Heat required to increase the temperature

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around the heat required to increase the temperature of 1 mole of nitrogen gas by 10 degrees Celsius, considering both constant volume and constant pressure scenarios. The context involves understanding the behavior of nitrogen molecules as they relate to degrees of freedom, specifically in terms of translational, rotational, and vibrational contributions.

Discussion Character

  • Conceptual clarification, Assumption checking, Mixed

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants explore the implications of modeling nitrogen as a one-dimensional harmonic oscillator and question the adequacy of this assumption regarding degrees of freedom. There is an attempt to reconcile the calculated heat values for isochoric and isobaric processes, with some participants discussing the contributions of translational and rotational motion to the total degrees of freedom.

Discussion Status

The discussion is active, with participants providing insights into the degrees of freedom of nitrogen molecules and how these relate to the heat calculations. There is recognition of the discrepancy between the original calculations and expected values, with some participants suggesting potential reasons for the differences. The conversation is ongoing regarding the approach to the constant pressure case.

Contextual Notes

Participants note that the problem is framed in a way that may lead to misunderstandings about the nature of nitrogen's behavior as a gas, particularly in relation to the ideal gas approximation. There is also mention of specific heat capacities and their differences in the context of the problem.

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Homework Statement


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At high temperatures the nitrogen molecule behaves like a one-dimensional harmonic oscillator. In this situation, estimate how much heat must be added to the system in order to increase the temperature of 1 mole of nitrogen gas by 10 degrees Celsius (for constant volume and constant pressure respectively). Take into account all degrees of freedom: translational, rotational and vibrational.

Homework Equations


Average energy per degree of freedom: ##kT/2##

The Attempt at a Solution


A one-dimensional harmonic oscillator has two degrees of freedom, therefore according to the equipartition theorem the average energy of a nitrogen molecule must be ##kT##. One mole of nitrogen has ##N_A## molecules and so the total internal energy of the gas is ##U=N_A k T##. Therefore if the process is isochoric the amount of heat we need to add to the system in order to increase the temperature by 10 degrees is
$$dQ=N_A k dT=N_A k \cdot 10\text{K} \approx 19.8 \text{cal}$$
However the correct answer is ##70 \text{cal}## and I don't understand why.
Also, I have no idea how to find the heat for the case of an isobaric process since this is not an ideal gas (the answer for constant pressure case is ##90 \text{cal}##).
 
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First of all, a nitrogen molecule is not a one dimensional harmonic oscillator. You are missing a lot of degrees of freedom by this assumption.
 
Orodruin said:
First of all, a nitrogen molecule is not a one dimensional harmonic oscillator. You are missing a lot of degrees of freedom by this assumption.
But that's how the question was formulated. It's not my assumption.
 
It is an oscillator that in addition can translate and rotate. Only the vibrational spectrum is described by an actual harmonic oscillator.
 
Orodruin said:
It is an oscillator that in addition can translate and rotate. Only the vibrational spectrum is described by an actual harmonic oscillator.
Oh I see. So the translational motion contributes 3 degrees of freedom whereas the rotational contributes 2. Therefore there are 7 degrees of freedom and the heat required is approximately 70cal, as expected.
But what about the constant pressure case? How can I approach this problem?
Thank you.
Edit: nevermind. I think the reason why it's ##90 \text{cal}## for constant pressure case is because ##C_p-C_v=2 \frac{\text{cal}}{\text{mol}\,\text{K}}## for nitrogen (apparently it does behave approximately as an ideal gas). So it requires additional $$\left(2 \,\frac{\text{cal}}{\text{mol}\,\text{K}} \right )\cdot (10 \,\text{K})=20 \,\frac{\text{cal}}{\text{mol}}$$ heat for constant pressure case.
 
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