Question

The mass of an argon atom can be computed from the specific heat at constant volume cv. Given that the specific heat of argon is cv = 0.075 cal g-1 oc-1, compute the mass of an argon atom?

Answer 1

To compute the mass of an argon atom, we can use the specific heat at constant volume (cv) and Avogadro's number. The specific heat of argon is given as 0.075 cal g-1 oc-1. Using the specific heat equation, we can calculate the molar mass of argon and then use Avogadro's number to find the mass of an argon atom.

Step-by-step explanation:

To compute the mass of an argon atom, we need to use the specific heat at constant volume (cv) and Avogadro's number. The specific heat of argon (cv) is given as 0.075 cal g-1°C-1.

Avogadro's number is 6.022 x 1023 atoms/mol. We can use the equation:

cv = (3/2) * R / M

where cv is the specific heat, R is the ideal gas constant (0.0821 L atm K-1 mol-1), and M is the molar mass of argon in g/mol.

We can rearrange the equation to solve for M:

M = (3/2) * R / cv

Substituting the given values:

M = (3/2) * 0.0821 / 0.075 = 2.49 g/mol

Now, we can calculate the mass of an argon atom using the molar mass and Avogadro's number:

Mass of an argon atom = M / Avogadro's number = 2.49 g/mol / 6.022 x 1023 atoms/mol = 4.14 x 10-23 g