How do gasses in a bottle have the atmospheric pressure

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the principles of gas pressure within a sealed bottle and how it relates to atmospheric pressure. When a bottle is capped, the internal gas pressure remains equal to the external atmospheric pressure, preventing collapse. Experiments, such as those conducted at varying altitudes, illustrate that changes in external pressure affect the internal pressure, but a sealed bottle maintains equilibrium until an external force alters this balance. The conversation emphasizes the importance of understanding pressure dynamics in everyday objects like bottles and light bulbs.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of gas laws and pressure dynamics
  • Familiarity with atmospheric pressure concepts
  • Basic knowledge of experimental methods in physics
  • Experience with pressure measurement tools, such as barometers
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the Ideal Gas Law and its applications
  • Learn about pressure changes in different altitudes and environments
  • Explore the construction and functionality of barometers
  • Investigate the effects of temperature on gas pressure
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Students, educators, and anyone interested in physics, particularly those studying gas laws and pressure dynamics in real-world applications.

B4ssHunter
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when you close a bottle , why doesn't it collapse on itself ? shouldn't it since the pressure outside the bottle is greater than the pressure inside
i know this is not the case , but how do gasses inside the bottle have the same pressure as the atmospheric ?
 
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The gas pressure equalizes while the cap is open. If there was a pressure imbalance then there would be flow until the pressure is balanced. One the pressure has equalized putting a cap on isn't going to change that.
 
B4ssHunter said:
when you close a bottle , why doesn't it collapse on itself ? shouldn't it since the pressure outside the bottle is greater than the pressure inside
i know this is not the case , but how do gasses inside the bottle have the same pressure as the atmospheric ?
Before you put the lid on, the air pressure inside is equal to the air pressure outside. Why do you think that placing the lid on the bottle would substantially change that situation?

Chet
 
There are quite a few "bottles" we come across daily whose internal pressure is lower than external. For example, certain light bulbs are that way. CRT computer/TV screens. When we dive a few meters deep, we are roughly in the same condition, too.
 
voko said:
There are quite a few "bottles" we come across daily whose internal pressure is lower than external. For example, certain light bulbs are that way. CRT computer/TV screens. When we dive a few meters deep, we are roughly in the same condition, too.
I hope this response doesn't confuse the OP. Maybe you can elaborate a little more on how, in these instances, the lower internal pressure comes about, and how this differs from the situation of simply putting a lid on a bottle at atmospheric pressure and constant temperature.
 
Chestermiller said:
I hope this response doesn't confuse the OP. Maybe you can elaborate a little more on how, in these instances, the lower internal pressure comes about, and how this differs from the situation of simply putting a lid on a bottle at atmospheric pressure and constant temperature.

I merely wanted to illustrate that it is perfectly fine to have a "bottle" with some low pressure inside, without its collapsing. I hope the OP can figure out what keeps it from collapsing. If not, we can discuss that.
 
B4ssHunter said:
when you close a bottle , why doesn't it collapse on itself ? shouldn't it since the pressure outside the bottle is greater than the pressure inside
i know this is not the case , but how do gasses inside the bottle have the same pressure as the atmospheric ?

as others have said ... It doesn't collapse, or for that matter expand. UNLESS there is a change of pressure on the outside
If the outside pressure drops, the internal pressure will be higher and visa versa

some years back when in Hawaii, I did this experiment with an empty plastic coca cola bottle.
On the "Big Island" is the mountain of Mauna Kea one of the highest places in the world you can drive to, just shy of 14,000 ft ( I went up to see all the telescopes at the top).
There is a large change in atmospheric air pressure between sea level and the top of the mountain. At the bottom of the mountain, I uncapped and recapped the empty coke bottle so that the pressure inside and outside were close to that of sea level pressure. The sides of the bottle would flex happily as I tried to squash it. But by the time I got to the top of the mountain, the sides of the bottle were VERY tight as the inside air pressure was now much higher that the outside air pressure.!

I then repeated the experiment in reverse. I uncapped and recapped the bottle at the top of the mountain and by the time I got to the bottom, the bottle had virtually totally crushed itself because now the air pressure inside was much less than the air pressure outside.

A real cool experiment :smile:

cheers
Dave
 
Last edited:
voko said:
I merely wanted to illustrate that it is perfectly fine to have a "bottle" with some low pressure inside, without its collapsing. I hope the OP can figure out what keeps it from collapsing. If not, we can discuss that.

But that is the wrong answer to the question - the bottle in the question doesn't have a lower pressure inside.
 
MrAnchovy said:
But that is the wrong answer to the question - the bottle in the question doesn't have a lower pressure inside.

I was not answering the question. I was addressing this: "why doesn't it collapse on itself ? shouldn't it since the pressure outside the bottle is greater than the pressure inside", where "since" is replaced with the less suggestive "if".
 
  • #10
Here's an experiment you can do at home
Make your own barometer and note the changes in air pressure

Take a glass jar and stretch a sheet of rubber across the opening and rubber band or tape it so it seals the jar. Take a drinking straw and glue it to the rubber top and so it sticks out past the edge of the jar for some inches
set it against a cardboard backing and have a line marked off in say 1/4 inch increments and watch how the end of the straw changes its position as the weather changes

attachment.php?attachmentid=61916&stc=1&d=1379469965.jpg



cheers
Dave
 

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  • #11
thanks everyone for your answers , i thought that once the gas is isolated it lost pressure , but now i understand the the atmospheric pressure already pressurized enough gas in the bottle such that they actually keep pushing on themselves with pressure = to that of the atmospheric gas , am i right ?
 
  • #12
You are basically right, just your wording is a little oddball :wink:

i thought that once the gas is isolated it lost pressure

As you have discovered ... there is no logical reason why that would happen

but now i understand the the atmospheric pressure already pressurized enough gas in the bottle such that they actually keep pushing on themselves with pressure

The gas in the bottle may have depressurised when you took off the cap ...
consider what happens when you unscrew the cap of a new bottle of coca cola ... what do you hear ? ... the hiss of the sudden depressurisation of the gas inside ( some of it which was disolved in the drink till you uncapped the bottle)

you would have done better by just saying ...
When the cap was removed from your bottle, the pressure inside and outside equalised.

Screwing the cap back on keeps the equal pressure UNTIL something occurs that changes the pressure either outside or inside the bottle.

hope that helps :)
its all fun learning ... I really suggest you try making one of those barometers as I showed above.

cheers
Dave
 
  • #13
davenn said:
You are basically right, just your wording is a little oddball :wink:



As you have discovered ... there is no logical reason why that would happen



The gas in the bottle may have depressurised when you took off the cap ...
consider what happens when you unscrew the cap of a new bottle of coca cola ... what do you hear ? ... the hiss of the sudden depressurisation of the gas inside ( some of it which was disolved in the drink till you uncapped the bottle)

you would have done better by just saying ...
When the cap was removed from your bottle, the pressure inside and outside equalised.

Screwing the cap back on keeps the equal pressure UNTIL something occurs that changes the pressure either outside or inside the bottle.

hope that helps :)
its all fun learning ... I really suggest you try making one of those barometers as I showed above.

cheers
Dave
yup thanks a lot for answering my questions :D i will do it once i get the rubber :D thanks a lot again
 
  • #14
davenn said:
If the outside pressure drops, the internal pressure will be higher and visa versa

I think you're referring to the relative pressure inside the bottle, that is, the difference between the internal and external pressure. If the volume of the bottle doesn't change, nor the temperature, then the absolute pressure inside doesn't change either.

But by the time I got to the top of the mountain, the sides of the bottle were VERY tight as the inside air pressure was now much higher that the outside air pressure.!

Right, the difference in pressure between inside and outside had increased, because the outside pressure had decreased, but the inside pressure stayed the same (more or less; if the bottle expanded a bit, that would have reduced the internal pressure a bit).
 
  • #15
QUOTE=jtbell;4507103]I think you're referring to the relative pressure inside the bottle, that is, the difference between the internal and external pressure. If the volume of the bottle doesn't change, nor the temperature, then the absolute pressure inside doesn't change either...
[/QUOTE]

yes the relative pressure difference between inside and outside :smile:

hence my following comment...
Screwing the cap back on keeps the equal pressure UNTIL something occurs that changes the pressure either outside or inside the bottle.

I just, at this stage, didnt go into what might cause those changes



D
 

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