Rankers Physics
Topic: Thermal Physics
Subtopic: Kinetic Theory of Gases

At what temperature, the mean kinetic energy of O2 will be the same as that of H2 molecules at – 73°C ?
127°C
527°C
-73°C
-173°C

Solution:

The mean kinetic energy of gas molecules depends only on temperature and is given by:

\[
\text{KE} = \frac{3}{2} k_B T
\]

where \( T \) is the temperature in Kelvin, and \( k_B \) is Boltzmann's constant.

Since we want the mean kinetic energy of \(\text{O}_2\) to equal that of \(\text{H}_2\) at \( -73^\circ \text{C} \):

1. Convert \(-73^\circ \text{C}\) to Kelvin:
\[
T_{\text{H}_2} = -73 + 273 = 200 \, \text{K}
\]

2. Since kinetic energy depends only on temperature, set the temperature \( T_{\text{O}_2} = T_{\text{H}_2} = 200 \, \text{K} \).

Therefore, the temperature at which \(\text{O}_2\) has the same mean kinetic energy as \(\text{H}_2\) at \(-73^\circ \text{C}\) is \(200 \, \text{K}\).

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *