Calculating PSI from Kinetic Energy and Tank Size

Join the discussion
Registration is free. Start your own thread to ask a follow-up.
1 reply · 6K views
BenChicago
Messages
2
Reaction score
0

Homework Statement



What is the resulting PSI when the kinetic energy of 100 kg at 7 m/s is used to compress air into a 15cm x 15cm x 60cm tank?


Homework Equations



Kinetic energy K = 0.5mv^2
Boyle's Law PV = K

The Attempt at a Solution



.5 x 100 x 7^2
50 x 49 = 2450 joules

.15 x .15 x .6 = .0135m^3
.0135 x V = 2450
V = 181481 pascals
V = 26.3 psi

** is this correct? seems like the psi is too small
 
Physics news on Phys.org
You can't just sanity check the pressure;

What if the tank were the size of a football stadium? Then 28 PSI would be a huge pressure for this problem.

It seems right to me for the size of the tank.