Ideal gas law- Find the pressure

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around the ideal gas law and the determination of pressure in a given scenario. Participants are examining the relationships between pressure, volume, and the variables involved in the calculations.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking, Mathematical reasoning

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants are questioning the consistency of the pressure variable in the calculations, with some suggesting that pressure should remain constant while volume changes. Others are clarifying the notation used in the equations and discussing potential typographical errors in the worked solution.

Discussion Status

The discussion is active, with participants providing insights into the notation and expressing confusion over the algebraic manipulations. There is an ongoing exploration of the relationships between the variables, and some participants are attempting to identify mistakes in their reasoning.

Contextual Notes

There is mention of a potential typo in the worked solution, and participants are reflecting on the implications of using different notations for pressure. The algebraic steps are under scrutiny, with participants seeking to clarify their understanding of the problem setup.

Woopa
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Homework Statement
A container of an ideal gas that is isolated from its surroundings is divided into two parts. One part has double the volume of the other. The pressure in each part is p and the temperature is the same. The partition is removed. What is the pressure in the container now?
Relevant Equations
PV=nRT
Question:
1645529215001.png

Answer:
1645529385444.png

In the third last line of working, I do not understand why the pressure variable is changing? Shouldn't pressure remain constant and only the Volume change?
 
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Woopa said:
In the third last line of working, I do not understand why the pressure variable is changing? Shouldn't pressure remain constant and only the Volume change?
Where do you see anything changing ? Strictly speaking ##p_{\rm\, final} ## is unknown and to be determined.
Then the outcome is ##p_{\rm \, final} = p##

Comment: they use capital ##P## in the solution, which is undesirable: once lower case ##p## , always lower case ##p##

##\ ##
 
The 2 and 3 numbers are for V rather than for p.
 
Lnewqban said:
The 2 and 3 numbers are for V rather than for p.
Do you mean it is a typo/ error in the worked solution?
 
V + 2V = 3V
 
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Lnewqban said:
V + 2V = 3V
Ah yes that make sense I can see now the numbers are actually for V, the way they've written out the equation has confused me.

However I am still arriving at the final answer P=2P. I must be making a mistake in my algebra. I will post my working in a moment
 
1645540153027.jpg


Where is my mistake?
 
##p⋅V/RT+p⋅(2V)/RT=p⋅(V+2V)/RT##
 
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##pV+2pV=p(V+2V)=3pV##

You are saying that it's equal to ##6pV##. That's your error.
 
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