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Calculate the speed of sound in air at 0° C that is composed of 60% nitrogen, 20% oxygen and 20% carbon. The molar mass of each element is 28 g/mol, 32 g/mol and 12 g/mol respectively.

User Mafii
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Answer:

the speed of sound in air at 0° C that is composed of 60% nitrogen, 20% oxygen, and 20% carbon is 331.5 m/s.

Step-by-step explanation:

The speed of sound in a gas is determined by the temperature and the molecular weight of the gas. To calculate the speed of sound in air, we need to first determine the average molecular weight of the air. The average molecular weight of a gas mixture is given by:

M = (f1 * M1 + f2 * M2 + ... + fn * Mn) / (f1 + f2 + ... + fn)

Where M is the average molecular weight, fi is the mole fraction of each component in the gas mixture (the fraction of total moles of that component), and Mi is the molecular weight of each component.

In this case, we have:

M = (0.6 * 28 g/mol + 0.2 * 32 g/mol + 0.2 * 12 g/mol) / (0.6 + 0.2 + 0.2)

= 29.6 g/mol

The speed of sound in air at 0° C is given by:

c = 331.5 * sqrt(1 + (T / 273.15))

Where c is the speed of sound in m/s, T is the temperature in °C, and 273.15 is the temperature at which the speed of sound is 331.5 m/s.

Substituting the values and solving for c, we get:

c = 331.5 * sqrt(1 + (0 / 273.15))

= 331.5 m/s

Therefore, the speed of sound in air at 0° C that is composed of 60% nitrogen, 20% oxygen, and 20% carbon is 331.5 m/s.

User Lukas Gund
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