The densities of gases are extremely low compared to the densities of liquids and solids.

A sample of gas expands to fill whatever space it is in.

Density of Gases

Molecular View

Lesson 8: Gas Density.

Comparing Density and Phase of Water

Water has three phases: solid, liquid, and gas. But these phases can take a few different forms. For example, snow and ice both represent solid forms of water.

There are many ways to demonstrate that gases exert pressure on the things around them.

Suppose you try to blow up a balloon inside a bottle. Even with a great deal of effort, the balloon will inflate only a tiny bit. The balloon does not inflate because there is air inside the bottle. Even though it looks like nothing is there, the bottle is full of air, and when you try to inflate the balloon, you are pushing on this air, which takes a lot of work!

Evidence of Air Pressure

Lesson 9: Air Pressure

Explanation for Air Pressure

The Atmosphere

Collisions of gas molecules with surrounding objects are what we experience as air pressure.

The atmosphere is a mixture of gases, including gaseous water. At sea level and 25C, there is 1 atm of pressure.

1 atm = 14.7 lb/in2

If you squeeze a sample of gas into a smaller container, its pressure will increase.

If you let a gas spread out into a huge volume, the gas pressure will get very low because there will be fewer collisions between the molecules and the container. Gas pressure and gas volume are inversely proportional.

The Syringe and Scale

Graphing PressureVolume Data

Lesson 10: Boyles Law

Boyles Law

The pressure P of a given amount of gas is inversely proportional to its volume V, if the temperature and amount of gas are not changed. The relationship is PV = k or P = k(1/V), where k is the proportionality constant.

Lesson 12: Review Questions. 1. Use the kinetic theory of gases to explain why increasing the gas volume decreases the gas pressure. According to the kinetic theory of gases, increasing the gas volume decreases the gas pressure because the molecules of gas have more room in which to travel and therefore they strike the walls of the container less often. 2. Use the kinetic theory of gases to explain why decreasing the gas temperature decreases the gas pressure. When you decrease the gas temperature the molecules slow down causing the pressure to decrease as well. 3. Suppose that the pressure of a gas in a cylinder has increased. What might have changed to cause this? Explain your thinking An increase in temperature probably caused the change in pressure because pressure and temperature are proportional and the volume of a gas cylinder doesnt change. 4. Why is it dangerous to heat a gas in a sealed container? The pressure will increase and cause the container to explode. 5. Can you decrease the volume of a gas to zero? Why or why not? The volume of a gas cannot decrease to zero because the particles of the gas themselves occupy space. 6. When you fly in a commercial airplane you feel the change in air pressure in your ears. It feels painful. Use the kinetic theory of gases to explain what you think is happening. The pressure from being high in the air increases on you and the gases in your body do as well causing your ears to pop. 7. At sea level, the pressure of trapped air inside your body is 1 atm. It is equal to the pressure of air outside your body at sea level. Imagine you do a deep sea dive. You descend slowly to a depth where the pressure outside your body is 3.5 atm. a. How does the volume of your lungs compare at 3.5 atm with the volume at sea level? The volume of your lungs at 3.5 atm is much lower than the volume at sea level. b. Why is it dangerous to hold your breath and ascend quickly?
8. Holding your breath when you ascend quickly is dangerous because the pressure decreases rapidly as you rise. If you hold your breath, your lungs will act as sealed containers, making the pressure inside the lungs much greater than the pressure outside the lungs, possibly causing your lungs to rupture.

The pressure P and the Kelvin temperature T of a gas are proportional when the volume and the amount of gas do not change. The relationship is P = kT. The value of the proportionality constant, k, depends on the specific gas sample.

If you heat a sample of gas in a closed container, its pressure will increase.

Gay-Lussacs Law

Lesson 11: Gay-Lussacs Law

Gas Law Problems

Gases can be trapped in an assortment of containers and subjected to various conditions of pressure, temperature, and volume. The gas laws allow you to calculate new values for gas temperature, gas pressure, and gas volume when two of these three variables change while the other remains the same.