We are all familiar with the general principles of operation of an internal combustion engine: the combustion of fuel drives out the piston. It is possible to imagine engines that use reactions other than combustions, and we need to assess the work they can do. A chemical reaction takes place in a container of cross-sectional area 100.0 cm^2; the container has a piston at one end. As a result of the reaction, the piston is pushed out through 10 cm against a constant external pressure of 100 kPa. Calculate the work done by the system in Joules.

Question

Chemistry

Nathanial Rasmussen

21 May, 12:55

We are all familiar with the general principles of operation of an internal combustion engine: the combustion of fuel drives out the piston. It is possible to imagine engines that use reactions other than combustions, and we need to assess the work they can do. A chemical reaction takes place in a container of cross-sectional area 100.0 cm^2; the container has a piston at one end. As a result of the reaction, the piston is pushed out through 10 cm against a constant external pressure of 100 kPa. Calculate the work done by the system in Joules.

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Answers (1)

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Melody Schneider · Answer 1

The work done by the system is 100 J

Explanation:

Given details

The cross sectional area of the of the container is A = 100.0 cm^2 = 0.01m²

The total distance pushed by the piston is d = 10 cm = 0.10m

The total external pressure by which piston pushed is P = 100 kPa

From above data, the following relation can be used to determine the change in volume of the container

∆V = A * d

∆V = 0.01 * 0.10 = 0.001 m³

By using the following relation, the work done by the system is calculated as;

Work done W = P * ∆V

W = 100 * 0.001 = 0.1 kJ = 100 J

The work done by the system is 100 J