Question

A cylinder with a frictionless piston contains 0.05 m3 of air at 60kPa. The linear spring holding the piston is in tension. The system is heated until the volume is 0.2 m3 and the pressure is 180 kPa. What is the work done by the air? External pressure is 100 kPa.

Answer 1

18 kJ

Step-by-step explanation:

Given:

Initial volume of air = 0.05 m³

Initial pressure = 60 kPa

Final volume = 0.2 m³

Final pressure = 180 kPa

Now,

the Work done by air will be calculated as:

Work Done = Average pressure × Change in volume

thus,

Average pressure =
`(60+180)/(2)` = 120 kPa

and,

Change in volume = Final volume - Initial Volume = 0.2 - 0.05 = 0.15 m³

Therefore,

the work done = 120 × 0.15 = 18 kJ