Question

A worker is holding a filled gas cylinder still. Which two sentences are true about the energy of the filled gas cylinder?

A) It has no energy because it's being held still.
B) It has gravitational potential energy because of its height.
C) Its atoms and molecules have thermal energy.
D) It has motion energy because it will fall if let go.
E) Its kinetic energy is being converted to potential energy.

Answer 1

The filled gas cylinder has gravitational potential energy due to its height and thermal energy at the molecular level, despite being held still. It does not have kinetic energy nor is it converting kinetic to potential energy while stationary.

Step-by-step explanation:

The energy of the filled gas cylinder can be described by two correct statements among the options provided. First, B) It has gravitational potential energy because of its height. Regardless of the cylinder being held still, it has energy due to its elevated position above the ground. The gravitational potential energy is a form of stored energy and is related to the object's position in a gravitational field.

Secondly, C) Its atoms and molecules have thermal energy. The thermal energy, also known as heat energy, is contained within the gas molecules due to their motion at the atomic and molecular levels. It is directly proportional to the temperature of the gas measured in kelvin and remains present even when the gas cylinder is stationary.

The other statements are incorrect because an object at rest does not have kinetic energy (which requires motion) or undergo conversion of kinetic to potential energy while being held still.