CHAPTER 1

THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS

Knowledge of the thermal properties of materials is desirable when deciding, for example, what
to use for making an electric storage heater or what to use as lagging in a refrigerator. Before
studying some of these properties, certain basic ideas will first be considered.

1.1 THERMOMETRY
Thermometry is the science and practice of temperature measurement. When we touch
something we either feel hot or cold or we may not feel anything at all. This relative feeling is a
qualitative measurement which can tell whether the body is warm or cold. But this type of
observation can not tell how much hot or how much cold it is. Hence, in order to get a
quantitative value of temperature we must be able to measure it and get a number corresponding
to the degree of hotness or coldness. A measure of the degree of hotness of a body is measured
using a thermometer. Temperature is the degree or measure of how hot or cold an object is.

 Thermometric Property
The property of a substance suitable for measuring temperature through their use in
thermometers is called the thermometric property and the substance is called a thermometric
substance. Such a property varies quite linearly with temperature over a reasonable range of
temperature. Depending on the range of linearity of the thermometric property and the
thermometric substance used, various types of thermometers suitable for measuring temperature
accurately over the same range are manufactured.Examples of thermometric properties can be
expansion of a column of liquid in a capillary tube, the electrical resistance of a platinum wire,
the voltage of a thermocouple, the expansion of a bimetallic strip, the pressure of a gas at
constant volume etc. Thermometric properties are important because temperature is intangible
but the related thermometric properties are tangible in nature. We cannot see temperature but we
can see its volume and color changing, we can see the pressure rising, we can see it becoming
denser or lighter than another reference material. So, we can use the change in volume to
correlate the change in temperature and by quantifying the volume change we can quantify
temperature.

What makes an ideal thermometer?

 an easy-to-read scale
 safe to use
 sensitive to temperature changes
 ability to measure a wide range of temperatures.

DEFINING A TEMPERATURE SCALE

We all have an idea of what we mean by ‘hot’ or ‘cold’. To give a numerical value to just how
hot or cold something is we introduce the idea of a ‘scale of temperature’. We make use of the
observation that certain physical quantities are affected by heat – for example, most liquids
expand when heated and contract when cooled.

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To establish a temperature scale we:
 Choose a physical property of a substance that varies continuously with its degree of
hotness (called a thermometric property) .
 Choose two standard degrees of hotness and assign numerical values to them.

Theory: First the thermometric property is left to change over a known temperature range (ice
point to steam point). Then the change in thermometric property and the temperature range are
correlated so that a relationship can be established. Any unknown temperature can be found out
by putting the value of change in the thermometric property in the relationship.

The Celsius scale of temperature

On this scale:
 The lower fixed point is the ice point. This is the temperature of pure ice melting under
standard atmospheric pressure (76cm Hg) and is defined as zero degrees Celsius (00C)
 The upper fixed point is the steam point. This is the temperature of steam coming from
water boiling under standard atmospheric pressure, and is defined as 1000C.
A fixed point is the single temperature at which it can be confidently expected that a particular
physical event always takes place.

To calibrate a thermometer on the centigrade scale, its thermometric property is measured when
the thermometer is at ice point and when it is at steam point. Each degree of temperature then
corresponds to ( X 100 X0 ) /100 , where X 100 and X 0 are the values of the thermometric property at
steam point and ice point respectively.
After a thermometer has been calibrated, it can be used to measure unknown temperatures.
Let X ❑ be the magnitude of the thermometric property at an unknown temperature .
Since the physical property of the substance varies linearly with temperature, we have
( X 100 X 0 ) ∝ ( 100 0 )
( X 100 X 0 ) = K( 100 0 ) ---------------------------------------------- (i)
Similarly,
( X X0 ) ∝ ( 0 )
( X X0 ) = K( 0 ) --------------------------------------------- (ii)
Dividing equation (ii) by (i)
X X0
=
X 100 X 0 100

= ( X❑ X 0
)
X 100 X 0
× 100

where  is the unknown temperature, in terms of the thermometer’s centigrade scale.

Thermodynamic temperature scale The Kelvin Temperature Scale

 The Kelvin temperature scale is the standard metric system of temperature measurement and
perhaps the most widely used temperature scale among scientists. The Kelvin temperature scale

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is similar to the Celsius temperature scale in the sense that there are 100 equal degree increments
between the normal freezing point and the normal boiling point of water. However, the zero-
degree mark on the Kelvin temperature scale is 273.15 units cooler than it is on the Celsius scale.
So a temperature of 0 Kelvin is equivalent to a temperature of 273.15 °C. Observe that the
degree symbol is not used with this system. So a temperature of 300 units above 0 Kelvin is
referred to as 300 Kelvin and not 300 degree Kelvin; such a temperature is abbreviated as 300 K.
Conversions between Celsius temperatures and Kelvin temperatures (and vice versa) can be
performed using the equation below.
T (Kelvin) = q (Celsius) + 273

To measure temperature on the absolute scale, we can use the properties of an ideal gas. The
ideal gas scale uses absolute zero as the lower fixed point, giving it the value 0, and for the upper
fixed point uses the triple point of pure airfree water, the value 273.16 K being given to it. The
ideal gas has zero pressure at absolute zero, so we measure the pressure and volume of an ideal
gas as our thermometric property.
The triple point of water is defined as the unique temperature at which pure ice, pure water and
pure water vapour can exist together at equilibrium. The triple point is particularly useful,
because there is only one pressure at which all three phases (solid, liquid and gas) can be in
equilibrium with each other.

Let P Tr be the pressure in the thermometer at the triple point temperature of water and P T be the
pressure in the thermometer when it is at the point where T is being measured. Since the physical
property of the substance varies linearly with temperature, we have
( P Tr 0 ) ∝ ( 273.16 0 )
P Tr = 273.17 K ---------------------------------------------- (i)
(PT 0) ∝ ( T 0)
P T = KT -------------------------------------------- (ii)
Dividing equation (ii) by (i), we have
PT T
=
P Tr 273.16
PT
T= × 273.16
P Tr
where T is the unknown temperature expressed in Kelvin (K).

TYPES OF THERMOMETERS
Thermometers differ by their operating principle and the thermometric property being
considered. Accurate measurement of the thermometric property is usually required so the
thermometer must be sensitive to small changes of temperature; accuracy in the measurement of
state coordinate; i.e. it should give the same reading for the same temperature at all times and at
all places. In some situations a thermometer must respond quickly to changes of temperature, and
it may be necessary to read the thermometer with remotely placed measuring equipment.
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The following is a list of various types of thermometers used;
 Liquid-in-glass thermometers
 Constant Volume Gas Thermometers
 Constant Pressure Gas Thermometers
 Platinum Resistance Thermometers
 Thermo-couples
 Radiation Thermometers

1. Liquidinglass thermometers
This type of thermometer is probably the most widely used and consists of a liquid in a
thinwalled glass bulb to which is fixed a thin capillary tube (Fig.1.1). The property that varies
with temperature is the volume of the liquid, which is measured by reading the length of the
liquid thread assuming the bore of the capillary to be uniform. They need to be checked
periodically because the initial calibration can become inaccurate after frequent use.
The glass expands and contracts minutely each time a liquidinglass thermometer is used.
Frequent use might cause the expansion of the glass to become permanent, so affecting its
readings. Mercury and alcohol are the commonly used liquids. The mercury inglass
thermometer is preferred because it is directreading, distil at low temperatures, has low specific
heat and high thermal conductivity; it does not stick to glass and shines, making it easier to see.
The relative expansion of mercury, through uniform, is fairly small.
.

If l 0 and l 100 are the lengths of a mercury column at ice point and steam point respectively and
l ❑ is the magnitude of the property at an unknown temperature  expressed in Celsius, then  is
given by the relation
l❑−l 0
 = × 100
l 100−l 0

There are a number of disadvantages to this instrument:

 The glass itself expands and contracts and leading to under and over reading of
temperatures.
 Parallax errors mean readings are only 0.1oC accurate.

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  The diameter of the bore is not consistent.
 Their large thermal capacity means that they do not react quickly and they may affect the
temperature they are trying to measure.

2. Gas thermometers
There are two main types of gas thermometer, one operating at constant volume and the other at
constant pressure. The constant volume gas thermometer is by far the more widely used and so
we will deal with it alone.The constant volume gas thermometer uses the pressure of a fixed
mass of gas at constant volume as its thermometric property.
The ideal gas equation states that for n moles of a gas:
PV = n RT
and therefore for a gas at constant volume V the absolute temperature T is directly proportional
to the pressure of the gas P.A simple form of constant -volume gas thermometer is shown in
Fig1.2. The gas is enclosed in the bulb B and the pressure recorded by the difference in levels (h )
of the mercury columns.

In its original state the glass bulb is full of air and the mercury levels are the same. A mark (R) is
made against the glass to record this. When the bulb is placed in a hot liquid for a temperature
reading, the air in the bulb expands, pushing the mercury down on the left and up on the right. To
get the air in the flask back to its original volume, the movable tube is lowered until the mercury
is at the level previously marked. There is now a level difference (head) h between the two tubes.
This is a measure of the pressure of the gas without taking account of atmospheric pressure H.
So accounting for atmospheric pressure, the pressure P of the gas at temperature θ is given by
P = h g + atmospheric pressure.

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It follows that the temperature of the gas, θ in degree Celsius is given by:

= ( )
P❑ P 0
P100 P0
× 100 ℃

where P0 and P100 are pressures at 0oC and 100oC respectively.

Advantages
 Use for a wide range of temperature.
 Very accurate.
 Very sensitive (It is the standard by which other thermometers are calibrated).

Disadvantages
 Slow to respond.
 Bulk, inconvenient.
 It is large and cumbersome.
 It is not direct reading, and that it cannot be used to measure varying temperatures,
because gases are such poor conductors of heat.

2. The platinum resistance thermometer

This type of thermometer uses the change in the resistance of a platinum wire with temperature
to measure the change in temperature.The resistance temperature detector element is made from
a pure material, typically platinum, nickel or copper. The metal of choice is platinum as a result
of its high melting point (1773oC) and large resistance temperature coefficient. The material has
a predictable change in resistance as the temperature changes and it is this predictable change
that is used to determine temperature. The significant characteristic of metals used as resistive
elements is the linear approximation of the resistance versus temperature relationship between
0 ℃ and 100 °C.
A simple form of the platinum resistance thermometer is shown in Fig 1.3.
It consists of a platinum wire wound non- inductively on a mica former and
held in a glass tube by silica spacers. The resistance of the wire is measured
with a Wheatstone bridge network and to allow for the change in resistance
of the leads a set of dummy leads are included in the opposite arm of the bridge
( See Fig.1.4). Resistance thermometer elements can be supplied which function
up to 1000℃ .
When calibrated against constant volume gas thermometers the relation
between temperature and resistance is given by the equation
R = R 0 [1+ αθ+ β θ2 ] ( 0℃ ≤ < 850℃ )
where R is the resistance of the platinum at ℃ , R 0 is the resistance
at 0℃ and  and  are constants. Since then  and  coefficients are
relatively small, the resistance changes almost linearly with the
temperature.

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The Celsius temperature  on the platinum resistance thermometer scale
R R0
would be calculated from the relation,  = × 100 ,
R 100 R0
where R , R 0 and R 100 are the respective resistances at unknown
temperature ,the ice point and the steam point.

Advantages and limitations

The advantages of platinum resistance thermometers include:
 High accuracy.
 Low drift.
 Sensitive and wide operating range.
 Suitability for precision applications.

Limitations
 Current source required.
 Less sensitive to small temperature changes and has a slower response time.
 Expensive.
 Self heating.
 The response is slow and they cannot follow rapidly changing temperatures. This is
because they take a considerable time to come into thermal equilibrium with their
surroundings due to the relatively large heat capacities resulting from the long length of
wires used.
 Since a Wheatstone bridge is used to measure the resistance this type of thermometer
does not give direct readings.

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4. Thermocouple Thermometer
In the early 1800s, Thomas Seebeck discovered that the junction between two metals generates a
voltage that is a function of temperature. A thermocouple is simply a practical application of the
"Seebeck Effect”. Thermoelectric effect or Seebeck effect is the conversion of temperature
difference into electric potential difference.

This effect is observed in thermoelectric materials when there is difference in temperature at

their ends. It is a temperature sensor that consists of two wires of dissimilar metals joined at one
end. The thermometric property of a thermocouple thermometer is the potential difference
between two different metals in contact. A thermocouple thermometer determines the
temperature by measuring a voltage generated as a result of the temperature difference between
two wires (the thermoelectric effect).

In a thermocouple two different metals are formed in a junction. One end called the cold
junction is embedded in a liquid of known temperature (usually ice) and the other junction
called the hot junction is placed at a point whose temperature is to be measured. The cold
junction is also known as reference junction.
Reference temperature ( C ) is the temperature of the maintained cold junction while the hot
junction will be transferred into the liquid whose temperature is to be found out. In practical
thermocouple thermometers, the cold junction is usually kept at a constant temperature, and the
hot junction is used to determine an unknown temperature.

When two different metal wires are brought into contact, then a current starts flowing through
the loop known as thermo electric current. But because the electrons can leave one metal more
easily than the other, a potential difference between the junctions called thermo electric emf
which is of the order of a few micro-volts per degree temperature difference (µV/°C) is
generated across the loose ends. The magnitude of this EMF relates to the temperature at the
junction.
The reference cold temperature of thermocouple is usually melting ice. The portions of the wires
near the hot junction are well insulated from each other by using asbestos beads. The hot
junction is placed in contact with the object whose temperature is to be measured. The
instrument is calibrated by keeping the hot junction at different known temperatures and the emf
of the order of millivolts generated is measured by an accurate digital millivoltmeter or a special
adapted potentiometer. The reading on the millivoltmeter increases as the temperature of the
junction increases, due to the increased EMF at the junction.
The magnitude and direction of thermo e.m.f in a thermocouple depends not only on the
temperature difference between the hot and cold junctions but also on the nature of metals
constituting the thermocouple.

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Variation of Thermoelectric E.M.F with temperature.
In a thermocouple as the temperature of the hot junction increases keeping the cold junction at
constant temperature (say 0°C),the thermo emf increases till it becomes maximum at a certain
temperature. The temperature of hot junction at which thermo emf becomes maximum is called
neutral temperature( n ). Neutral temperature is independent of the temperature of cold junction.
It depends on the nature of metals forming the thermocouple. If the temperature of hot junction
increases beyond neutral temperature, thermo emf start decreasing and at a particular
temperature it becomes zero, on heating slightly further, the direction of emf is reversed.
This temperature of hot junction at which the thermometric EMF is zero and changes its polarity
is called temperature of inversion ( i).
The neutral temperature is constant for a thermocouple, but the temperature of inversion depends
upon the temperature of the cold junction

In every case if the cold junction is maintained at 0℃ , it is found that the EMF varies with
temperature of the hot junction according to the relation;
E =  +  2
where  and  are thermo electric constants having units of volt/°C and volt/°C2 respectively.
This relationship is, of course, parabolic ( See Fig.1.6).

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In the above graph, the change in E for a given change in temperature gets less and less as the
neutral temperature is approached. Thus, a thermocouple thermometer is not usually used to
measure temperatures close to its neutral temperature, because the variation of the e.m.f. with
temperature is small and the thermometer is therefore not very sensitive to temperature change in
this region. Moreover, there may exist two different temperatures giving the same
e.m.f. and this gives rise to ambiguity.
dE
From the graph, there exists a neutral temperature qn for which = 0.
d
d
i.e., ( +❑ ) =  +2 = 0
2
d
n = 
2
It shows that the temperature of inversion ( i ) always exceeds the neutral temperature ( n ) by the
same amount as the neutral temperature exceeds that of the cold junction( c )
.i.e in = n c
2❑c = i + ❑c
+❑c
❑n = i
2
❑
If n = 0℃ then
❑n = i
2
or i = 2❑n
❑

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Thermoelectric power
The rate of change of thermo emf with the change in the temperature of the hot junction is called
thermoelectric power. It is also given by the slope of parabolic curve representing the variation
of thermo emf with temperature of the hot junction. The thermo electric power is also called
Seebeck coefficient. Differentiating both sides of the equation of thermo emf with respect to q,
we have thermoelectric power
dE d(
+❑ ) = a +2bq
2
P= =
d d

Errors in measurement of thermocouple EMF.

The thermoelectric EMF varies with temperature according to the relation
E =  +  2
If k% is an error in measuring the value of E then,
❑2 = k%
E
❑ = k
2

+❑2 100
k  + k  = 100
k  = 100  k 
k
 =
( 100 k )

Advantages
 It can be used to measure temperature accurately because of its electrical nature and a
wide range of temperature difference(0.001K - 2000K)
 It absorbs a very small amount of heat from the object and therefore does not change the
temperature to be measured.
 It is cheap and can be easily constructed.
 It can be used to measure temperature of remote objects, e.g., a furnace, and of small
objects like a small cavity.
 It has a very small heat capacity as only a small junction needs to be heated. Hence it has
little disturbance on the temperature of the body to be heated. This property also enables
it to measure rapidly fluctuating temperatures as the junction can come into thermal
equilibrium with the surrounding quickly.
 If a millivoltmeter is used, the scale may be calibrated to read the temperature directly.

Disadvantages
 It is not a direct reading instrument, so cannot be used for calorimetric purposes.
 For different ranges of temperature, different thermo-couples have to be used.
 Each thermo-couple has to be calibrated individually.
 Low voltage and reference is required
 The readings are not accurately reproducible,
 The thermal e.m.f. does not vary linearly with temperature as measured by other
thermometers.

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5. Radiation pyrometer thermometer
A pyrometer is generally considered to be a high -temperature measuring thermometer. Very hot
objects emit light as well as infra-red radiation, and the colour changes with increased
temperature. A radiation pyrometer is a noncontact temperature sensor that infers the
temperature of an object by detecting its naturally emitted thermal radiation. It is used to measure
the temperature of very hot objects without being in contact with them. An optical system
collects the visible and infrared energy from an object and focuses it on a detector, as shown in
Figure.1.7. The detector converts the collected energy into an electrical signal to drive a
temperature display or control unit. The thermal radiation from the furnace is compared in terms
of colour with the thermal radiation from a lamp filament in the pyrometer.

The current through a heated filament lamp is adjusted until, when viewed through the telescope,
it seems to disappear. The radiation from the lamp and from the heat source are therefore the
same. The current through the lamp is a measure of the temperature of the heat source, and the
ammeter is calibrated in units of temperature. The absorption screen is used to absorb some of
the radiant energy from the heat source and thus extend the measuring range of the instrument.
The monochromatic filter produces single-colour,usually red, light to simplify filament radiation
matching.

Advantage of using pyrometer

 There is no practical limit to the temperature that a pyrometer can ensure.
 A pyrometer need not be directly into the hot zone and so is free from the effect of heat
and chemical attacks that can often cause other measuring devices to deteriorate in use.

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  The temperature of the moving bodies can be measured.

Disadvantages of using pyrometer

 A pyrometer is often more expensive than other temperature measuring devices.
 Manual adjustments is necessary
 A direct view of heat process is necessary.

Disagreement between thermometers.

It should be noted that if different types of thermometers are used to measure temperature, they
only agree at the fixed points 273.16 K on the thermodynamic scale , 0℃ and 100℃ for
example on the Celsius scale. Because of the disagreement between different types of
thermometers, it becomes necessary to choose a particular type of thermometer as standard. Gas
thermometers, either constant volume or constant pressure, give nearly universal readings, i.e.
the readings do not depend on the nature of the gas used, provided that the gas is sufficiently.
They are also sensitive, accurate, suitable for use over a wide range of temperatures and give
highly repressible readings. Although real gases are not idealize, they do not obey Boyle’s and
Charles’s laws perfectly, they can still give the ideal gas temperature by extrapolation by
platinum resistance. Thermometers like the platinum resistances wires and thermocouple do not
possess these properties and are unsuitable as primary standards. They must be calibrated against
the ideal gas scale before they can be put into practical use.

The principle of thermal equilibrium

Two bodies in thermal contact are said to be in thermal equilibrium when its reach the same
temperature and the  net rate of heat transfer between  the two  bodies is zero. When a
thermometer is in thermal contact with a substance ( for example  hot water) , heats flows from
the hot water to the thermometer(mercury).When thermal equilibrium is reached  the net rate of
heat  transfer between the two substances is zero. The temperature of the thermometer is same as
the temperature of the hot water. Hence by showing its own temperature, the thermometer also
reads the temperature of the hot water.

TYPICAL SOLVED EXAMPLES

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Example 1. (a) A fixed mass of gas maintained at constant pressure has a volume 200 cm 3 at the
temperature of melting ice, 273.2 cm 3 at the temperature of boiling water under
standard pressure, and 525.1 cm 3 at the boiling point of sulphur. A platinum wire
has resistances of 2.000, 2.778 and 5.28  at the same temperatures. Calculate
the values of the boiling pont of sulphur given by the two sets of observations
and comments on the results.

(b) The numerical values p and r of two thermometric properties P and R are
observed at a number of fixed points. These numbers are related for all
temperatures by the equation
r =  + p, where  and  are constants. Show that the Celsius scale based on
the property P and property R are identical, even if P and R do not vary
linearly with temperature.

Solution
(a) The Celsius temperature ,according to the constant pressure gas thermometer
scale is given by
V V0
= × 100
V 100 V 0
where V , V 0 and V 100 are the respective volumes at unknown temperature of
the boiling point of sulphur, ice point and steam points.
525.1 200
= × 100 = 444.1℃
273.2 200
The Celsius temperature  according to the platinum resistance scale is given
by
R R0
= × 100
R 100 R0
where R , R 0 and R100 are the respective resistances at unknown temperature of
the boiling point of sulphur, ice point and steam points.
5.28 2.0 0 0
= × 100 = 421.6℃
2.778 2. 0 00
The temperatures recorded on the thermometers are therefore different. This is
due to the fact that the variation of volume of the gas with temperature at
constant pressure is different from the variation of the electrical resistance of
platinum with temperature.

p❑− p0
(b) P = × 100,
p 100− p 0

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 r ❑−r 0 ( + p❑ )−( + p 0 )
R = × 100 = × 100
r 100 −r 0 ( + p100 ) −( + p0 )
p❑− p0
= × 100 = P
p 100− p 0
 R = P

Example 2. (a) (i) Explain how a temperature scale of an ideal gas is defined.
(ii) Explain why two thermometers, using different thermometric properties
calibrated at two fixed points, would not necessary show the same
temperature except at the fixed points.

(b) A particular constant  gas thermometer registers a pressure of 1.256 × 105 Nm 2

at the triple point of water and 1.798 × 105 Nm 2 at normal melting point of
sulphur.What is the absolute temperature of normal melting point of sulphur as
recorded by this thermometer.

Solution
(a) (i) The ideal gas scale uses an ideal gas as a working substance and the property
measured is the pressure when the volume is kept constant. It uses absolute
zero as the lower fixed point, giving it the value 0, and for the upper fixed
point uses the triple point of pure airfree water, the value 273.16 K being
given to it. With such a scale we thus have
PT
T = × 273.16 K
P Tr
where P T is the pressure measured at temperature T and P Tr the pressure at the
triple point of water.

(ii) Two thermometers, using different thermometric properties calibrated at two

fixed points, would not necessary show the same temperature except at the
fixed points due to the fact that, each thermometer has its own thermometric
property which varies linearly with temperature in different way.

(b) The Kelvin temperature T of the constant gas thermometer is given by

PT
T= × 273.16
P Tr
where P T is the pressure at absolute temperature of normal melting point of
sulphur and P Tr is the pressure at triple point of water.
1.798 ×105
T= 5 × 273.16 = 391 K
1.256 ×10

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Example 3. (a) Explain how a temperature scale is defined.
(b) A liquid in glass thermometer uses a liquid whose volume varies with
temperature according to the relation ,
V = V 0 ( 1+ + 2 ) , where  and  are constants. If  = × 104, what will
be the temperature indicated on the liquid in this glass thermometer scale when
that on the gas thermometer is 50℃ ?.

Solution.
(a) To define a temperature scale a thermometric property of a body is chosen, two
fixed points are selected and the magnitudes of the property chosen ( expansion
of liquids or solids, the pressure and volume changes of gases etc) are measured
at these two points. Then the temperature  when the thermometric property has
some other value,X is given by

= ( X❑ X ice
X steam X ice
× 100)
where X ice and X steamare the magnitudes of the property chosen at the lower
and upper fixed points respectively.

(b) The volume V corresponds to a temperature  on the scale of the liquid in glass
thermometer which is given by

 = (V ❑V 0
V 100 V 0 )
× 100

Where, V0 and V 100 are the volumes at 0℃ and 100℃ respectively.

It follows that the volume temperature which corresponds to a temperature of
50℃ on the gas thermometer scale is given by ;

 = ( V50 V0
V100 V 0 )
× 100

V = V 0 ( 1+ + 2 )
V50 = V 0 ( 1+ ×10 4 ×50 + × 502 ) = V 0 + 50.25× 104 V 0
V0 = V0
V100 = V 0 ( 1+ ×10 4 ×100 + × 1002 ) = V 0 + 10.1× 105 V0

 = ( V 0 + 50.25 × 104 V0
5
V 0 + 10.1 ×10 V0 V 0
V0
) × 100

=
( 50.25 ×10 4 V 0
10.1× 105 V 0 ) × 100 = 49.8℃

Mwalonde,B. 0 714-053910/0767-053910 Page 16

 The temperature indicated on the liquid in this glass thermometer scale is 49.8℃
.

Example 4. A particular physical property X of a substance changes in magnitude in heating.

Explain how you might use the property to obtain a Celsius temperature scale.
The relation connecting the magnitude of X and the absolute temperature is given
by; X T =
T 217
Where T is greater than 217 K and  is a constant. Derive an expression for the
Celsius scale using the magnitude of the property X chosen as the thermometric
property. What is the value of the Celsius scale ℃ corresponding to the value of
T= 517 K?

Solution
Suppose the magnitudes of the property chosen (expansion of liquids or solids) are
X 0 and X 100 at the lower and upper fixed points respectively. Then the temperature
 when the thermometric property has some other value, X ❑ is the magnitude of the
property at an unknown temperature . The Celsius scale  is given by the relation,

 = ( X❑ X 0
X 100 X 0 )
× 100

Given, X T =
T 217
X 0 = X 273 = =
273 217 56
X 100 = X 373 = =
373 217 1 56
X244 = X 517 = =
517 217 300
It follows that the property temperature which corresponds to a temperature of
517 K ( or 244℃ ) on the gas thermometer scale is given by

 = (
X 244 X 0
X 100 X 0 )
× 100 =
X 517 X 273
X 373 X 273 (
× 100 )
=
( 300

156
56

56
) × 100 = 126.9℃

The value of the Celsius scale corresponding to the value of T= 517 K? is 126.9℃

Example 5.The electrical resistance, in ohm, of a certain thermometer varies with temperature
Mwalonde,B. 0 714-053910/0767-053910 Page 17
 according to the approximate law
R T = R 0 [ 1+ 4.9× 10 3 ( T T 0 ) ]
The resistance is 96.0  at the triple point of water and 149.8  at the normal
melting point of sulphur (510) K . What is the temperature when the resistance is
120  ?. Given, triple point of water as 273.16 K.
Solution
Resistance at triple point of water T (= 273.16) = 96.0
Resistance at the melting point of sulphur ( T = 510 K ) = 149.8 
From the relation, R T = R 0 [ 1+ 4.9× 10 ( T T 0 ) ]
3

96.0 = R 0 [ 1+ 4.9× 10 ( 273.16 T0 ) ]

3
------------------------------- (i)
and 149.8 = R 0 [ 1+ 4.9× 10 ( 510 T0)]
3
-------------------------------(ii)
Dividing equation (i) by (ii), we get,
96 R 0 [ 1+ 4.9 ×10 3 ( 273.16 T0 ) ]
=
149.8 R 0 [ 1+ 4.9× 10 3 ( 510 T 0 ) ]
3 3
96 (1+ 4.9 ×10 ( 510 T 0 ) ) = 149.8 (1+ 4.9 ×10 ( 273.16 T0 ) )
3 3
1+ 4.9 ×10 ( 510 T 0 ) = 1.56 (1+ 4.9 ×10 ( 273.16 T 0 ))
1 + 2.499  4.9 × 10 3 T0= 3.648 0.007644 T0
 0.149 =  0.002744 T0
T0 = 54.3 K
Substituting the value of T0 in eq(ii), we get
149.8 = R 0 [ 1+ 4.9× 10 3 ( 510 54.3 ) ]
149.8 = 3.23293 R 0
R 0 = 46.3 
When the resistance is 120 , let the unknown temperature be T.
120 = 46.3 [ 1+ 4.9× 10 3 ( T 54.3 ) ]
120 = 46.3 + 0.22687 ( T  54.3)
324.86 = T  54.3
T = 379.2 K

Example 6. The resistance R of a coil of wire at a temperature , on the ideal  gas scale, is
given by
R = R 0 ( 1+ + 2 )
where R 0 is resistance at 0℃ ,  = 3.0× 10 3 K 1 and  =  5.0× 10 7 K 2. If the
resistance of this coil of wire were used to define a resistance temperature scale,
what would be the difference between the temperature value assigned to an object
by this scale and the temperature of 60℃ indicated by the ideal gas

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 scale, assuming both scales coincided at 0℃ and 100℃ ?

Solution
A resistance R corresponds to a temperature  on the scale of the resistance
thermometer which is given by

 = (
R❑ R0
R100 R0 )
× 100

Where,R 0 and R 100 are the resistances at 0℃ and 100℃ respectively. It follows that
the resistance temperature which corresponds to a temperature of 60℃ on the gas
thermometer scale is given by

 = (
R60 R0
R100 R0 )
× 100

R = R 0 ( 1+ + 2 )
R 60 = R 0 ( 1+ 3.0 × 10 3 × 60 5.0× 10 7 × 602 ) = 1.1782R 0
R0 = R0
R 100 = R 0 ( 1+ 3.0 × 10 3 × 100 5.0 × 10 7 × 1002 ) = 1.295 R 0
Therefore

 = ( 1.1782 R0 R 0
1.295 R 0 R 0 ) × 100 = 60.41 ℃

Hence the difference in value is 60.41 ℃  60 ℃ = 0.41 ℃

Example 7. A copper constantan thermocouple with its cold junction at 0℃ had an e.m.f
of 4.28 mV with its other junction at 100 ℃ . The e.m.f became 9.29 mV when
the temperature difference was 200℃ . If the e.m.f .E is related to temperature
difference by; E =  +  2.
(a) Calculate the value of  and .
(b) Find, up to what temperature, may the e.m.f, E be assumed to be
proportional to without incurring an error of more than one percent.

Solution
(a) E =  +  2,
4.28 = 100 + 10000 -------------------------------------------(i)
9.29 = 200 + 40000 --------------------------------------------(ii)
Solving equations (i) and (ii) simultaneously, we have

{
8.56 = 200 + 20000
9.29 = 200 + 40000
0.73 = 20000
 = 3.915× 10 2 mV℃ 1 and  = 0.365× 10 4 mV℃ 2

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 (b) IF k% is an error in measuring the value of E then,
❑2 = k% = 1%
E
2 1
or ❑ 2 =
+❑ 100
2
99❑    = 0
99× 3.65× 10 ❑  3.915× 10  = 0
8 2 5

Solving for , gives 1 = 0 and 2 = 10.8℃

The range is ( 2 1 ) = 10.8℃

Example 8.The e.m.f E obtained from a chrome constant thermometric is 6.32mV at

1000 C and 24.9 mV at 6000C .If E is related to the Celsius by
E = ( + β ❑2 ) volts.
(a) Determine the neutral temperature and inversion temperature.
(b) What will be the value of temperature when the e.m.f, E = 16.4 mV ?

Solution.
(a) E = ( + β ❑2 ) volts.
At 100℃ , E = 6.32 mV
6.32 = 100 + 10000 ----------------------------------------------- (i)
At 600 ℃ , E = 24.9 mV
24.9 = 600 + 360000 ---------------------------------------------- (ii)
Solving equations (i) and (ii) gives
 = 0.06754 mV℃−1 = 67.54× 10 3 mV℃−1 and
 =  4.34× 10 5 mV℃−2 =  43.4× 10 6 mV℃−2
dE d
= ( + β ❑ ) =  + 2 = 0
2
At neutral temperature,
d d
67.54 × 10 mV ℃-1
3
n =  =  = 778℃
2 2 ( 43.4 ×10 6 mV ℃-2 )
Temperature of inversion occurs when E = 0
i.e  +  2 = 0
67.54 × 10 3 mV ℃-1
❑i =  =  = 1556℃
( 43.4 ×10 6 mV ℃-2 )
(b) E = + β ❑2
When E = 16.4 mV
16.4 = 67.54× 10 3 +  43.4× 10 6 ❑2
43.4× 10 6 ❑2 67.54× 10 3 + 16.4 = 0
On solving gives,  = 1255℃ or 301℃

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 Since it is clearly not desirable to use a thermocouple to measure
temperatures close to its neutral temperature, because the variation of EMF
with temperature is small and the thermometer is therefore insensitive in this
region, therefore the value of temperature when E = 16.4 mV is 301℃

Example 9. A thermocouple connected to a millivoltmeter gives EMF at  °C as

E = 0.36  – 0.00048 2 mV. If the thermocouple-millivolt meter combine is found
to be correctly calibrated at 0 °C and 100 °C, find the temperature measured by the
thermocouple when a gas thermometer reads 70 °C.

Solution
The emf value at 0 °C :
E = 0.36 × 0 – 0.00048 × 02 = 0 mV
The emf value at 100 °C :
E = 0.36 × 100 – 0.00048 × 1002 = 31.2 mV
Difference in voltage = 31.2 mV
Difference in temperature = 100 °C
100
Rate of change =
31.2
EMF read by thermocouple at 70°C is
E = 0.36 × 70 – 0.00048 × 702 = 22.848 mV
100
Hence, the voltage indicated is  = × 22.848 °C = 73.23 °C.
31.2

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 PROBLEMS FOR PRACTICE

1. (a) (i) What is meant by a thermometric property ? What quantities make a particular?
property suitable for use in a practical thermometer?
(ii) Explain why the same temperature measured on two different scales need not have the
same value except at the two fixed points.

(b) The resistance of a thermistor over a limited range of temperature is given by the equation
R= where  is a constant and T is the absolute temperature. What would be the
T 203
temperature on the centigrade scale of the thermometer at absolute temperature
T = 300 K ? [ 47.3 ℃ ]
2. The electrical resistance of a certain metal as measured by a gas thermometer varies with
temperature approximately according to the relation given by
R T = R 0 ( 1+ β ( T T0 ) ) , where R 0 is the resistance of the Kelvin temperature T0 and the
value of  = 4× 10 3 K 1 . If the resistance at 0 ℃ is 100  and that at 100 ℃ is 160 ,
(a) what will be the resistance at 20 ℃ [ 112 ]
(b) At what temperature is the resistance measured to be 200 ? [ 439.68 K ]

3. (a) (i) Briefly explain the essential steps involved in setting up a scale of temperature.
(ii) What is meant by triple point of water?

(b) The resistance R of platinum varies with the temperature ℃ as measured by a constant
volume gas thermometer according to the equation
R = R 0 ( 1+ 8000 2
)
where  is a constant and R 0 is resistance at 0℃ . Calculate the temperature on the
platinum scale corresponding to 400℃ on this scale.
[ 385 ℃ ]

4. Explain how a centigrade temperature scale is defined, illustrating your answer by reference to
a platinum resistance thermometer.
The resistance R of platinum varies with the temperature ℃ , measured on the gas scale,is
given by R = R 0 ( 1+ + 2 ), where  = 3.900× 10 3 and  =  5.7× 10 7 . What
temperature will the platinum thermometer indicate when the temperature on the gas scale
Mwalonde,B. 0 714-053910/0767-053910 Page 22
 is 400℃ ?
[ 382℃ ]

5. (a) (i) Describe how mercury in glass thermometer could be made sensitive.
(ii) A thermometer has wrong calibration ( of course at equal distance and the capillary is
of uniform diameter). It reads the melting point of ice at  10℃ . It reads 60 ℃ in
place
of 50℃ . What is the temperature of boiling point of water in this scale.
[ 130℃ ]

(b) If the resistance R t of the element of a resistance thermometer at a temperature of t℃ on

the ideal gas scale is given byR t = R 0 ( 1+ A t + B t 2 ), where R 0 is the resistances at 0℃
and A and B are constants such that A =  6.50× 103B, what will be the temperature on
the scale of the resistance thermometer when t = 50℃ ? [ 50.4 ℃ ]

6. (a) Why is it generally not sensible to use a thermoelectric e.m.f as the physical property used
to define a scale of temperature ?.

(b) The thermo e.m.f of a thermocouple varies with temperature  of the hot junction ( cold
junction at 0℃ ) as E = ( +❑2 ) V , where  and  are constants of thermocouple.
At temperatures 20℃ and 240 ℃ the e.m.fs generated by this couple are 850 V and
9580 V respectively. Find
(i) the values of constants  and , [ Ans: = 42.27 V/ ℃ , = 0.012 V/ ℃2 ]
(ii) neutral and inversion temperature.
[ 1783℃ , 3566 ℃ , ]

7. For a CuFe thermocouple, the cold junction is kept at 0℃ ,the thermal e.m.f. E
in µV is given by
E = a + b 2
where a and b are constants,  is the temperature on the ideal gas scale. If the numerical value
of a and b are respectively equal to 14.0mV / °C and b =  0.025mV / °C2.
(a) Determine the neutral and inversion temperature.
[ 280℃ , 560 ℃ , ]
(b) What would be the temperature  on the ideal gas Celsius scale if the measured e.m.f. is
650 µV? What would be the corresponding temperature  on the thermocouple scale

Mwalonde,B. 0 714-053910/0767-053910 Page 23

 when E = 650 mV ?
[ 51℃ , 56.5℃ , ]

8. The thermometric e.m.f E of a copper constantan thermocouple, and the temperature  of the
hot junction (with cold junction at 0℃ ) are found to satisfy approximately the following
1
relation; E = a  + b 2
2
Where E in V ,  in ℃ and a = 41 V℃−1 , b =  0.041V℃−2
(a) Calculate the neutral and inversion temperature. [ 1000 ℃ , 2000 ℃ ]
(b) What is the temperature of the hot junction when the thermoelectric e.m.f is
measured to be 5.6 mV? [ 147.4 ℃ , ]

CHAPTER 2

HEAT TRANSFER
Introduction
Ideas about heat are often misunderstood. For example, you may have heard phrases like, ‘close
the door or the cold will get in’ or the heat of the building is unbearable. Both are wrong in terms
of physics. Letting the cold in, should really be letting energy out, objects contain internal
energy, not heat. In physics and thermodynamics, heat is any transfer of energy from one body or
system to another due to a difference in temperature. When an object is at a different temperature
from another body or its surroundings, heat flows so that the body and the surroundings reach the
same temperature, at which point they are in thermal equilibrium. Such spontaneous heat
transfer always occurs from a region of high temperature to another region of lower temperature.

In this chapter, we shall investigate the mechanisms by which heat is transferred from one place
to another. Heat transfer is classified into three distinct modes; conduction, convection and
radiation.

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 2.1 Thermal Conduction
The transfer of heat between two adjacent parts of a body because of their temperature
difference, without the actual movement of the particles of the body from their equilibrium
positions is called thermal conduction.
For non-metals heat is conducted by vibration of atoms or molecules. When a substance is
heated, its particles gain energy and vibrate more vigorously about their equilibrium positions.
The particles bump into nearby particles and make them vibrate more. This passes the thermal
energy through the substance by conduction, from the hot end to the cold end.

For metals, besides the above mechanism, thermal conduction also occurs through the collisions
of free electrons with the lattice atoms. Metals contain many free electrons. When one end of
metal is heated, the electrons at the hot end receive thermal energy and diffuse to the other parts
of the metal. Energy is transferred through the collisions of the free electrons with the lattice
atoms.

Conduction of heat is most important in the insulation of houses because much of the heat
produced in the house is lost by conduction through the walls, roof, windows and floor and
knowledge of materials that can be used to reduce this loss is of great importance.

Knowledge of conduction heat transfer is used in designing air conditioner tubes with high
conductivity rate, for effective heat transfer with air.

Suppose one end of a metallic rod is put in a flame. The other end of the rod will soon feel so hot
you cannot hold it by your bare hands. Here heat transfer takes place by conduction from the hot
end of the rod through its different parts to the other end.

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 Steady state conduction is a form of conduction that happens when the temperature difference
driving the conduction is constant, so that after an equilibration time, the spatial distribution of
temperatures in the conducting object does not change any further. In steady state conduction,
the amount of heat entering a section is equal to amount of heat coming out.
Consider a metal rod of length L and uniform crosssectional area A with its two ends
maintained at temperatures 1 and 2 such that 1 ¿ 2.

When the steady state is reached, the temperature of the rod decreases uniformly with distance
from the hot end to the cold end. The hot body supplies heat at a constant rate which transfers
through the bar and is given out at the same rate to the cold body. The rate of flow of heat is
called the heat current.
It has been experimentally observed that the amount of heat energy per second conducted along
the metal bar ( i.e. the heat flow rate) is
 directly proportional to the area of crosssection A of the rod.
 directly proportional to the temperature difference ( 1 2 ) between the hot and cold faces
 inversely proportional to the distance L between the hot and cold ends.
Combining the above three factors, we have
Q (
∝ A 1 2
)
rate of flow of heat ,
t L
Q KA ( 1 2 )
t =L
Here K is a constant of proportionality called coefficient of thermal conductivity of the material.
It value depends upon the nature of material. This is called the law of heat conduction.

Mwalonde,B. 0 714-053910/0767-053910 Page 26

 (1 2 )
The quantity gives the change of temperature per unit distance along the bar.
L
It is called the temperature gradient at any position along the bar.
d
If we denote the temperature gradient by , then
dx
dQ d
=  KA
dt dx
Negative sign shows that the temperature decreases as distance dx increases.

The coefficient of thermal conductivity of a material is defined as the rate of flow of heat per
unit area per unit temperature gradient when the heat flow is at right angles to the faces of a thin
parallel – sided slab of the material.
Q/t
i.e K = ( 1 ❑2 )
❑
A
L
J /s
SI unit is 2 = Wm 1 K 1
m × K /m
M L2 T 3
The dimensional formula of K = 2 = ML T 3 K 1
L ×K × L 1

Temperature distribution along the conductor.

Consider a uniform bar which is insulated along its sides. Suppose one end is at a constant
temperature 1 and the other end at a lower constant temperature 2. Heat is conducted from the
hotter end to the colder end at a steady rate. Because the sides are perfectly insulated, the heat
energy per second reaching the cold end is equal to the heat energy per second from the hot end.
The temperature varies along the bar as shown in Fig.2.4 (b).The temperature fall per unit length
along the bar is the same from one end to the other. A conducting bar whose sides are well
wrapped with a good heat insulator for the purpose of preventing the heat loss to the
surroundings is called a lagged bar. The heat loss from the sides is neglected so that the flow of
heat per second is constant along the length of the bar. i.e the temperature fall per unit length
along the bar is the same from one end to the other.

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The temperature gradient at any position along the bar is defined as the change of temperature
per unit distance along the bar. If L is the length of the bar and 1 2 is the temperature difference
between the two positions, then the temperature gradient is given by
(1 2 )
L
Now consider the same bar without insulation along its sides. Assume the same temperature 1
and 2 as before. Heat energy is lost from its sides. So the heat energy flowing per second
reaching the colder region is less than the heat energy per second which flows from the hot
region (i.e., the amount of heat energy flowing per second is not constant).
Fig 2.5 shows heat flow lines which spread out from the hot region. The temperature fall per unit
length along the bar is faster near the hot end.

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 Heat flow through the composite bar
Consider a bar made of two materials, both of the same crosssectional area A, one a good
conductor and the other a poor conductor, and assume that the bar is perfectly lagged, so that no
heat leaves its sides. Let 1, 2 with (❑1 >❑2 ) be the respective temperatures of the outer faces of
the bar, and  the respective junction temperature.

The heat flowing into one end of the bar is equal to that flowing out the other end, and so the rate
of flow of heat in one material is equal to that in the other material.
Q (1 )
For the good conductor, =  k1 A
t L1
Q ( 2 )
For the poor conductor, =  k2 A
t L2
where k 1 and k 2 are the thermal conductivities of the two materials and L1 and L2 are the lengths
of the two sections of the bar. Since the rates of heat flow are equal, we have
Q ( 1 ) k A ( 2)
= k1 A = 2
t L1 L2

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 Q/ t ×L1
1 =
k1 A
Q/ t ×L2
2 =
k2 A
Adding these two equations, we get

1 2 =
Q
(
L1 L2
At k1 k 2
+
)
A ( 1 2)
Q
t
(
= L1 L2
+
k1 k2 )
If the bars of equal dimensions are arranged in series, i.e L1 = L2 = L , then
A ( 1 2)
Q
t
(
= L 1 +1
k1 k 2 )
k1 k2 Q/t × L
=
k1 + k2 A ( 1 2)
If k eff is the effective thermal conductivity of the compound slab, then,
Q k eff A ( 1 2 )
t =
2L
k eff Q/t × L k1 k2
=A =
2 ( 1 2) k 1 +k 2
2 k1 k 2
k eff =
k 1 +k 2

Heat flow through slabs in parallel

Consider two slabs A and B of equal dimensions connected in parallel. Letk 1 and k 2 be the
respective thermal conductivities of the two materials connected between two reservoirs at
temperatures 1 and 2 as clearly shown in Fig.2.7.
The rate of heat flow through bar A is

( )
Q
t 1
( )
= k1 A 1 2 ,
L
Similarly, for B

( )Q
t 2
( )
= k2 A 1 2
L
But for parallel slabs arrangement,

( ) ( )
Q
t 1
≠
Q
t 2

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The total rate of quantity of heat flowing across
he composite slab in is given by
Q
t
=
Q
( ) ( )
+
t 1 t 2
Q

Q ( 1 2) k A ( 1 2)
= k1 A + 2
t L L
Q A ( 1 2)
t
= ( k1 + k 2 )
L
Q A ( 1 2)
t
= ( k1 + k 2)
L
The effective thermal conductivity of the composite slab is given by
Q/t × L
k eff = = k 1 + k2
A ( 1 2)
k eff = k 1 + k2

 RADIAL FLOW
Now suppose that the cylindrical tube, of inner radius a and outer radius b , has length L, and
that the inner cylindrical surface is maintained at constant temperature 1, the outer at constant
temperature 2 .We wish to determine the temperature distribution ,the direction and magnitude
of the heat flow within the material.
Suppose steam at temperature ❑1 is passed through the tube. Let ❑2 be the temperature of the
outer surface of the tube. Imagine the cylindrical tube to be made up of large number of thin co-
axial cylinder.
Consider one such cylindrical shell of radius r and infinitesimal thickness dr. Let the temperature
difference between the inner and outer surface of this shell be d .
Rate of heat flow across the element is,
Q d
=  KA , but A = 2πrL
t dr
Q d
= 2πrLK
t dr
The negative sign shows that the temperature
decreases with increase in r.
Q dr
× = 2πLK d
t r
b
Q
∫ drr = 2πLK∫ dθ
2

Integrating,
t a 1

Q b
[ ln r ]a = 2πLK [ ] 2

t 1

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Q
t
ln
b
a() = 2πLK (❑1 ❑2 )

2 πLK (❑1 ❑2 )
Q
t
=
ln
b
a ()
Ice Formation in a Lake
The water in a like freezes when the temperature of the air in contact with it falls below 0℃ .
The density of ice is less than water and so the ice floats on the surface of water and its thickness
gradually increases. Let x be the thickness of layer so formed. Let the temperature air just above
ice be  ℃ and the temperature of water below ice in the lake be 0℃ . The thickness of layer
of ice will increase when heat from water below ice conducts through the ice layer already
formed.
Let the cross-section area of the ice be A. Suppose the thickness of ice increases by dx in a time
dt .
Mass of ice formed = Volume × density of ice = Adx ρ
Heat given out by water = mL = Adx ρL --------------------------------- (i)
where L is the latent heat of fusion of ice.
This heat is conducted through the layer of ice of thickness x .Let K be the thermal conductivity
of ice.
Heat conducted = KA ¿ ¿ dt -------------------------------------- (ii)
From equations (i) and (ii), we have
KA dt
Adx ρL =
x
dx K dx
= , where is the rate of growth of the thickness of ice. The expression can be
dt ρL x dt
used to find the time taken by the layer of ice to increase
its thickness from x 1 to x 2.
ρL
i.e dt = xdx
K
t x2
ρL
Integrating, ∫ dt = ∫ xdx
0
K x1

[ ]
2 x2
ρL x ρL
t =
K 2
= 2 K ( x 22−x 21 )
x1

ρL 2 2
t= ( x −x )
2K 2 1

Thermal resistance

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The thermal resistance is defined as the temperature difference per unit rate of heat flow along
the conductor.
Q ( )
The rate of heat flow along the conductor is, = KA 1 2
t L
( ) L
Thermal resistance, R Th = 1 2 = , where
Q /t KA
A = area of cross-section of the conduct
K = thermal conductivity of the material.
The unit of thermal resistance is K W 1

Effects and Uses of Thermal conductivity in Daily Life

(i) Cooking utensils are made of metals but provided with wooden handles: As the metals
are good conductors of heat, heat can be easily conducted through the base of the utensils. The
handles of utensils are made of woods which are poor conductors of heat so that utensils can be
held without hand getting burnt.
(ii) Birds swell their feathers in winter: By doing so, the birds enclose air between their
bodies and the feathers. Air is a poor conduct, so it prevents loss of heat from the body of the
bird and it maintains its body temperature.
(iii) Ice is packed in saw dust: Saw dust and air trapped inside it is a poor conductor of heat. So
ice will not get heat from surroundings and it will not melt.
(iv) In winter metals appear colder than wood: In winter human body is at high temperature
than the surrounding objects. So heat flows from our body to the metal when we touch it. But no
heat flows from body to wood, as it is a poor conduct of heat. So metals appear colder
(v) A hot liquid remains hot and a cold liquid remains cold in a thermos flask: This is due
to the fact that a vacuum is created between the two walls of the thermos flask. Heat can neither
flow from inside the flask to outside nor from outside air to the liquid inside the flask. Not that in
this way loss of heat by conduction, and convection has been minimized.
(vi) When hot water is poured in a beaker of thick glass, the beaker cracks: When we pour
hot water in a glass beaker, the inner surface of the glass expands on heating. Since glass is a bad
conductor of heat, the heat from inside does not reach the outside surface quickly. Hence the
outer surface does not expand and the glass cracks.
(viii) Woolen clothes help us in winter against cold: Wool is a poor conductor of heat and
contains a layer of dry air in it. Since air is also a poor conductor of heat, therefore it neither
allows the bodily heat to escape nor allows the external cold comes in and thus keeps the body
warm in winter.

Application of thermal conductivity on the Domestic Cooking Utensil.

The plate of the cooking utensils has the following thermal rating properties:
 High Coefficient of thermal Conductivity to ensure that from the source of heat, the
utensil should conduct away heat as quickly as possible. Further, the temperature of the

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 material inside the vessel must be raised quickly as high as possible. For this, it is
essential that the vessel itself should be capable of being raised to a high temperature
soon.
 Low value of specific heat capacity to ensure that with a given minimum amount of
heat, the vessel itself should be capable of being raised to a high temperature soon.
 Low coefficient of expansion to ensure no considerable expansion of the vessel to
disturb handling of the vessel (nuts, screws etc ).Vessel needs to be prevented from
damage due to high temperature.
 High melting point to ensure that vessels withstand high temperature.

Experimental determination of Thermal conductivity of a good conductor

( Searle's bar method)

Searle's bar method is an experimental procedure to measure thermal conductivity of material.

A bar of material is being heated by steam on one side and the other side cooled down by water
while the length of the bar is insulated so as to prevent any loss of heat from the sides.

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Thermometers 3 and 4 are provided to measure the temperatures of the outgoing and incoming
water. Two holes are drilled in the rod and mercury is filled in these holes to measure the
temperature of the rod at these places with the help of thermometers 1 and 2.

Then the quantity of heat dQ propagating from the steam chamber through the bar in a time
interval of dt is given by

( )
dQ
=
dt ¯¿¿ L
KA ( 1 2 )

where K is the coefficient of thermal conductivity of the bar,

A is the crosssectional area of the bar ,
L is the length of the bar and
1 2 is the temperature difference of both ends of the bar.

The heat dQ absorbed absorbed by water in a time interval of dt is by the water is

( )
dQ
dt water
=
c w dm ( 1 2 )
dt
where Cw is the specific heat of water,
dm is the mass of water collected during time dt ,
1 2 is the difference in temperature of water before and after it has gone through the bar.

Assuming perfect insulation and no energy loss, then

( ) ( )
dQ
dt ¯¿¿
=
dQ
dt water
KA ( 1 2 ) c w dm ( 1 2 )
L
= dt
c w Ldm ( 1 2 )
Which leads to K =
A ( 1 2 ) dt

Experiment to find the thermal conductivity of a Solid ( Poor Conductor) by Lee’s Disc
Method

Lee’s disc method is used to find the thermal conductivity of a poor conductor available in the
form of a thin disc e.g cardboard. The apparatus is shown in Fig.2.11.

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With a poor conductor the rate of flow of heat will be small and so a thin specimen with a large
cross-sectional area has to be used. The apparatus is known as Lee's disc.The specimen rests on a
brass base plate and a steam chest is placed on top. Steam is passed through the chest and the
temperature of the base plate and the base of the steam chest is measured. The thermometers are
set in good thermal conductors and therefore the temperatures that they measure are effectively
those of the faces of the specimen.

When a steady state has been reached the temperatures 1 and 2 are recorded. The rate of loss of
heat from the base plate being by radiation and convection, the base plate is polished so that
radiation losses are small and Newton's law of cooling can be applied. We can assume that the
heat lost from the sides of the specimen itself is negligible.

 The rate of loss of heat from the base plate can be found as follows:
The specimen is removed and the base plate heated directly by the steam chest to nearly 100 oC.
The steam chest is then removed, the specimen replaced and a cooling curve plotted for the base
plate and specimen (Figure 2). The rate of cooling R at the temperature 2 can be found by taking
the gradient of the curve at that point. If m and c are the mass and specific heat capacity of the
material of the base plate, then the rate at which it is losing heat to the surroundings when its
d d
temperature is  is given by mc , where is the gradient of the graph (i.e the rate of fall of
dt dt
temperature at  ).

KA ( 1 2 ) d
Lee’s disc equation is = mc
L dt
The thickness L and cross-sectional area A of the specimen can be found using vernier calliper

2.2. Thermal Convection

The heat transfer by mass motion of a fluid such as air or water when the heated fluid is caused
to move away from the source of heat, carrying energy with it is called convection.
Familiar examples of Convection include hot-air and hot-water home heating systems, the
cooling system of an automobile engine, and the flow of blood in the body. Convection above a
hot surface occurs because hot air expends, becomes less dense and rises. Hot water is likewise
less dense than cold water and rises, causing convection currents which transport energy.
Convection can also lead to circulation in a liquid, as in the heating of a pot of water over a
flame. Heated water expands and becomes more buoyant. Cooler, denser water near the surface
descends and pattern of circulation can be formed, though they will not be as regular. As a result,
heat is transferred upwards by the rising fluid. The rising of the hotter portion and the sinking of
the cooler portion of the fluid form convection current. This is how the heating system in your
home transfers the energy into the house.

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Whether the heating is done by hot water that is circulating in pipes or hot air that is circulating
in ducts, the temperature in each room is increased (or decreased) by the convection currents.
Typical convection heating applications include water and oil immersion heating, air heating, gas
heating and comfort air heating.

If the fluid is circulated by a blower or pump, the process is called forced convection; if the
flow is caused by differences in density due to thermal expansion, such as hot air rising, the
process is called natural or free convection. Free convection in the atmosphere plays a
dominant role in determining the daily weather, and convection in the oceans is an important
global heat-transfer mechanism. The most important mechanism for heat transfer within the
human body (needed to maintain nearly constant temperature in various environments) is forced
convection of blood, with the heart serving as the pump.

The mechanism of heating a room by a heater is entirely based on convection. The air molecules
immediate contact with the heater are heated up. These air molecules acquire sufficient energy
and rise upward. The cool air at the top being denser moves down to take their place. This cool
air is in turn heated and moves upward. In this way, convection currents are set up in the room
which transfers heat to different parts of the room.

Newton’s Law of Cooling

Newton was the first person to investigate the heat lost by a body in air. He found that the rate of
heat loss is proportional to the excess temperature of the body over the surroundings. This result,

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called Newton's law of Cooling, is approximately true in still air only for a temperature excess of
20 K or 30 K.

Statement
The rate of loss of heat by a body is directly proportional to the temperature difference between
the body and the surroundings, provided the excess temperature is small.
This result is approximately true for cooling by natural convection ( i.e in still air ) for small
temperature differences ( up to about 30℃ ) but is true for all excess temperatures in conditions
of forced convection of air, i.e in a draught. Beside the excess temperature, the rate of heat loss
depends on the exposed area S and on the nature of the surface of the body  a dull surface loses
heat a little faster than a shiny one because it is a better radiator. This can be shown by doing a
cooling experiment twice, with equal masses of water, but once with the calorimeter polished,
and once after it has been blackened in a candle-flame.

Consider a hot body at a temperature  placed in surroundings at temperature R.Suppose a body

emits dQ energy in dt second and the mean temperature of the body during this interval is  ,i.e.,
1+ 2
 =
2
where 1 is the temperature of the hot body at the beginning of the interval and 2 the temperature
at the end of the interval. Then, according to Newton’s law of cooling,


dQ
dt ( +
∝ 1 2 R
2 )
dQ
=  k ( R)
dt
where k is a constant of proportionality whose value depends upon the area and nature of the
surface of the body.
If the temperature of the body falls by a small amount d in time dt then,
dQ = mcd
where m is the mass of the body and c is the specific heat of the material of the body.
According to Newton, the rate at which the object cools down is proportional to the difference
between the temperature of the object and that of the medium. If denotes the temperature of the
object at time t and if R denotes the constant temperature of the surrounding medium, then the
law translates into the differential equation,
d
mc =  k( R )
dt
d
R
=
k
mc
dt =  K dt ( K =
k
mc
= constant )
The negative sign indicates a decrease in temperature with time.
t
d
Integrating, ∫ ❑ =  K ∫ dt
dt
R 0

log e ( R ) =  Kt +  -------------------------------------------- (i)

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where  is a constant of integration.
This is the equation of a straight line having negative slope ( K ) and intercept  on y−¿ axis.
If the temperature of the body at t = 0, is 0 ,then
 = log e ( 0 ) . Therefore,
log e ( R ) = Kt + log e ( 0 )
log e ( R )  log e ( 0 ) = Kt
log e
( )
0
R

R
= Kt

R = ( 0 R ) eK t ----------------------------------------- (ii)
Expression (ii) shows that as time increases the temperature of the body decreases exponentially
with time.
Now , the mass of a body is proportional to its volume ( i.e a small body cools faster than a large
one). In a calorimeter by the method of mixtures, the fact that the small body cools faster than
the large one means that the large the specimen, the less serious is the heat loss in transferring it
from its heating place to the calorimeter. Also a dull surface loses heat a little faster than a shiny
one, because it is a better radiator.

Experimental investigation of Newton’s law of Cooling

Newton’s law of cooling can be verified with the help of the experimental setup shown in
Fig.2.13.

Procedure:
 A calorimeter containing hot water and standing on an insulating surface (e.g wooden
slab) is placed in the stream of air from an electric fan or an open window.

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  The temperature of hot water in the calorimeter is noted after equal intervals of time.
 The water should be stirred prior to each temperature measurement. A graph of
temperature (℃ ) versus time ( t / min) is plotted ( Fig.2.14 (a)).
The graph drawn between the temperature of a body and time is known as cooling curve. The
slope of the tangent to the curve at any point gives the rate of fall of temperature. If R is the
temperature of surroundings / room temperature, then, the excess temperature of water is ( R ).
If rate of fall of temperature is plotted against excess temperature, we get a straight line passing
through the origin. (See Fig.2.14 (b)).
Since the heat lost per minutes by the water and calorimeter is proportion to the rate of fall of
temperature, Newton’s law of cooling is thus verified.

The five  fourths power law

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This applies when a body is cooling under conditions of natural convection. It can be stated as
under:
5/4 5/4
Rate of loss of heat to surroundings ∝ ( R ) = K ( R ) , where
 is the temperature of the body , s = temperature of the surroundings and
K is a constant of Proportionality whose value depends on the nature and the area of the body’s
surface. If the temperature ( R ) is small, the relation becomes approximately linear.

Application of Convection
(i) Ocean currents
When sun rays fall on the ocean, water gain heat energy and become less dense and rise up and
moves towards the poles and the cold water to moves toward the equator. This movement of
water is called ocean current.
(ii) Warming of rooms
In cold countries they use the system to generate heat in rooms using heaters.
 The air molecules in immediate contact with the heater are heated up and they gain
sufficient energy and rises up, their place is replaced by cold molecules due to different
densities.
 The convection currents are set up in the rooms which transfer heat to different parts of
the room,

(iii) Land and sea Breezes

The heat from the sun is absorbed more rapidly by land than by sea water. Moreover, the
specific heat of land is low as compared to that of seawater. Consequently, the rise in
temperature of land is higher as compared to that of seawater. To sum up, land is hotter than the
sea during day time. As a result of this, the colder air over the sea blows towards the land. This is
called seabreeze. At night, air blows from land towards sea. This is called land breeze.

(iv) Ventilation
Ventilation or exhaust fan in a room help to remove impure and warm air from a room. The fresh
air from outside blows into the room. The fresh air from outside blows into the room. This is all
due to the convection currents set up in the room.

(v) To regulate temperature in the human body.

Heat transfer in the human body involves a combination of mechanism. These together maintain
a remarkably uniform temperature in the human body inspite of large changes in environmental
conditions. The chief internal mechanism is forced convection. The heart serves as the pump and
the blood as the circulating fluid.

2.3 Thermal Radiation

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Radiation heat transfer is concerned with the exchange of thermal radiation energy between two
or more bodies. Thermal radiation is defined as is the transfer of heat energy by electromagnetic
waves such as visible light, infrared, and ultraviolet radiation without heating the intervening
medium. Everyone has felt the warmth of the sun’s radiation and the intense heat from a charcoal
grill or the glowing coals in a fireplace. Most of the heat from these very hot bodies reaches you
not by conduction or convection in the intervening air but by radiation. This heat transfer would
occur even if there were nothing but vacuum between you and the source of heat.

The heat transferred into or out of an object by thermal radiation is a function of several
components. These include its surface reflectivity, emissivity, surface area, temperature, and
geometric orientation with respect to other thermally participating objects. All bodies , even at
ordinary temperatures, emits energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation, (sometimes called
electromagnetic waves).The rate of emission of energy depends on the temperature of the body
and the nature of its surface. The warmer objects radiating more energy than cooler objects.
Similarly, all bodies absorb electro-magnetic radiation. The rate of absorption depends on the
nature of the surface only.

The temperature of the darker tube increases more rapidly than the temperature of the shiny tube.
When the source of energy is removed, the two tubes return to their initial temperature in about
the same time.
Familiar examples of Radiation transport include:

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  Highly reflecting metal foil on satellites in space keep inside temperature low.
 A solar cooker uses radiation to cook food and boil liquids.

When thermal radiation is directed at a surface, some of the radiation is absorbed by the surface
and some is reflected. Some of the radiation may pass through the surface and be transmitted
right through the material to pass out through the other side. Most materials do not transmit
thermal radiation through, so thermal radiation incident on a surface is usually either reflected or
absorbed.

Absorptive power
The term absorptive power is used to express the ability of the body to absorb the incident
radiation. The total absorptive power of a body is defined as the ratio of the quantity of energy
absorbed in a certain time to the total energy falling normally upon it in the same time.

Reflecting Power
The reflecting power of a substance may be defined as the ratio between the quantity of thermal
radiation reflected and the total quantity of radiation that is incident on it, normally in a given
time.

Transmitting Power
The transmitting power of a substance may be defined as the ratio between the quantity of
thermal radiation transmitted through it and the total quantity of radiation incident on it,
normally in a given time.
Suppose Q is the thermal energy incident on a surface. The total energy reflected, absorbed and
transmitted per second per unit area of the substance is equal to the energy falling on the surface
over the same area and in the same time.

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i.e Q = R + A + T
Let r , a and t be the reflecting, absorptive and transmitting powers of the substances
respectively. Then the fractions of the incident energy reflected, absorbed and transmitted by the
substance per second per unit area is given by R = Qr , A = Qa and T = Qt
Qr + Qa + Qt = Q
r+a+t=1
This equation shows that if a body is a good absorber a = 1 and then r = 0 and t = 0
i.e a perfect absorber neither reflects nor transmits any radiation, thus it appears to be black and
is called a Black body.
In particular, matt black surfaces are the best absorbers and the best emitters of radiation; highly
polished silver surfaces are both poor emitters and poor absorbers.

. Properties of Thermal Radiation

 Thermal radiation travels in straight lines, like light
 Thermal radiation travels with the velocity of light in vacuum, i.e thermal radiation
reaches earth after passing through vacuum between the sun and the atmosphere.
 Thermal radiation obeys the inverse law.
 Thermal radiation obeys the laws of reflection.
 Thermal radiation exhibits the phenomenon of interference, diffraction and polarization

The Black body

The black body is a source of all thermal radiation. A Perfect black body is defined as a body
that absorbs completely the radiations of all wavelengths falling on its surface. Since a perfectly
black body neither reflects nor transmits any radiation therefore its absorptance is unity. It is for
the same reason that it appears black irrespective of the wavelength of incident radiation.

There is no object that is an ideal blackbody, but many objects (stars included) behave
approximately like blackbodies. Other common examples are the filament in an incandescent
light bulb or the burner element on an electric stove. As you increase the setting on the stove
from low to high, you can observe it produce blackbody radiation; the element will go from
nearly black to glowing red hot. A surface coated with lamp black or platinum black absorbs
96% to 98% of the incident radiation and may be considered as a perfectly black body for all
practical process.

For accurate experimental work, a good blackbody can be made simply by punching a small hole
in the lid of closed empty tin. The hole looks black because the radiation that enters through it is
reflected from the inside walls many times and is partially absorbed at each reflection until
almost the entire radiation gets absorbed (See Fig.2.16).

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When a body is heated, it becomes a source of thermal radiation. The radiation from a constant
temperature enclosure depends only on the temperature of the enclosure. It does not depend on
the nature of the substance of which the enclosure is made.

Black body Radiation

When a perfect black body is heated at a suitable high temperature, it emits radiations of all
possible wavelengths. This radiation is called black body radiation or full radiation. It would
emit at every wavelength of light as it must be able to absorb every wavelength to be sure of
absorbing all incoming radiation.
The maximum wavelength emitted by a black body radiator is infinite. It also emits a definite
amount of energy at each wavelength for a particular temperature, so standard black body
radiation curves can be drawn for each temperature, showing the energy radiated at each
wavelength. All objects emit radiation above absolute zero temperature.
The quality of radiation from a perfectly black body depends only on its temperature. The hotter
the blackbody, the more light it gives off at all wavelengths. That is, if you were to compare two
blackbodies, regardless of what wavelength of light you observe, the hotter blackbody will give
off more light than the cooler one. Objects at around room temperature emit mainly infra-red
radiation ( ≫10mm) which is invisible. The sun emits most of its radiation at visible
wavelengths, particularly yellow (≫0.5mm).

Spectral Emissive Power

The thermal radiation emitted by any hot body depends upon the temperature of the body, the
nature of the surface, size of the body and the nature of the surroundings. If all other conditions
remain the same, the amount of thermal radiation emitted by different surfaces depends on the

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nature of the surface. The spectral emissive power of a body for particular wavelength  at a
given temperature is the amount of radiant energy emitted per unit time per unit area of the
surface within unit wavelength range around the wavelength .
If we consider a small wavelength interval d around , then the amount of energy emitted or
radiated in that wavelength interval d will be e ❑ d❑.
The total energy emitted by a body per unit time per unit area for all possible wavelengths
ranging from zero to infinity is given by
∞
e = ∫ e❑ d❑
0

This is known radiant emittance.

Emissivity
This is the ratio of the emissive power of a body to the emissive power of a black body at the
same temperature. It is represented by ,
e
i.e.,  = or e = E
E
where E = emissive power of the black body and e is the emissive power of the body.
The emissivity for a perfectly black body is equal to unity and for any other body it is less than
one.

Energy distribution in the spectrum of a Black body

The energy emitted by a black body covers a large range of wavelengths. The distribution of
energy over the range is known as the energy spectrum. The wavelength at which most of the
energy is transmitted depends on the absolute temperature of the black body. Fig.1.2.17,
illustrates the way in which the energy radiated by a black body is distributed amongst the
various wavelengths.

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Results or conclusion drawn from the Black body spectrum

 The distribution of energy among the different wavelengths of the spectrum of black
body radiation is not uniform. At a given temperature, the energy initially increases with
wavelength, becomes maximum corresponding to a particular wavelength m and then it
moves to shorter wavelengths for hotter objects.
 Corresponding to each wavelength, there is an increase in energy emission with an
increase in temperature.
 With an increase in the temperature of the black body, the maxima of the curves shift
towards shorter wavelengths. In other words, m decreases with an increase in
temperature.
1 b
m ∝ or m =
T T
where b is called Wien’s constant. Its value in SI units for a perfect black body is
2.897× 10 3 mK.
 The area under each curve represents the total energy ∫ e❑ d at the temperature for
0

which the curve is drawn. The area increases with an increase in temperature. It has been

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 observed that the area is directly proportional to the fourth power of the absolute
temperature. This is in accordance with the Stefan’s Boltzmann law.

Laws of Black Body Radiation.

Wien’s law. Wien was the first to study the distribution of energy in spectrum of a black body.
He formulated two laws.
 Wien’s displacement law
 Wien’s fifth power law
He combined these two laws together into one general form and is called Wien’s law of energy
distribution or Wien’s distribution law.

1. Wien’s Displacement Law

According to this laws, the wavelength ( m) of maximum intensity of emission of black body
radiation is inversely proportional to the absolute temperature (T) of the black body i.e.,
1
m ∝
T
or m T = b
where b is called Wien’s constant. Its value in SI units for a perfect black body is
2.898× 10 3 mK
This implies that when a body is heated to ordinary temperature, the maximum emission of
energy corresponds to longer wavelength. But as the temperature of the body is raised, the
radiation of shorter and shorter wavelength is also emitted. This explains the well known
observation that when a piece of iron is heated to about 1200 K say, the visible wavelengths
which are emitted lie predominately at the red end of the spectrum and the iron at this
temperature becomes red  hot. At higher temperatures the proportions of the other spectral
colours increase so that increasing temperatures cause the overall colour of the iron piece to
change from red through yellow to white.
The Wien’s displacement can be used to determine the temperature of heavenly bodies such as
Sun, Moon and the star.

2. Wien’s fifth Power law

Let E max is the height of the peak of the curve for the temperature T, then
E max ∝ T5
This is called the fifth power law.

3. Wien’s Distribution law

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The curve showing the variation of E with  at constant temperature T obeys the planck’s
formula
C1
E = 5 c /T , where c 1 and c 2 are constants.
(e 1) 2

4. The Stefan–Boltzmann law

The Stefan–Boltzmann law, also known as Stefan's law, describes the power radiated from a
black body in terms of its temperature. Specifically, the Stefan–Boltzmann law states that the
total energy radiated per unit surface area of a black body across all wavelengths per unit time ,
is directly proportional to the fourth power of the black body's thermodynamic temperature T.

If E is the amount of energy emitted per unit area per second from the surface of a black body at
absolute temperature T in kelvins, then
E ∝ T4
E =  T4
where  is a fundamental physical constant called the Stefan–Boltzmann constant.
This relationship is called the Stefan–Boltzmann law in honor of its late- 9th-century
discoverers. The current best numerical value of  is 5.67 × 10 8 Wm 2 K 4 .
Stefan’s law applies to the whole range of wavelengths, without being limited to any particular
wavelength.
If A is the area of the black body at the temperature T, then the total amount of energy radiated
per second is given by
P = A T4

Radiation and Absorption

Stefan’s law can be extended to represent the net loss of heat by a body. Consider a black body at
absolute temperature T surrounded by another black body at absolute temperature T0. A unit area
4
of the inner black body loses heat energy  T4 per second. But it also gains heat energy  T0 per
second.
Net loss of heat energy per unit area per unit time
E =  T4   T0 =  ( T −T0 )
4 4 4

If the body is not a perfect blackbody, then

E =  ( T −T0 )
4 4

where  is called the radiation emissivity or emissivity of the surface.

The value of  depends upon the nature of the surface. If A is the area of the black body at the
temperature T, then the total amount of energy radiated per second is given by
P = A ( T −T0 )
4 4

Deduction of Newton’s Law of Cooling from Stefan’s Law

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Consider a hot body at a temperature T K placed in a constant temperature enclosed at a
temperature T0 K. Let A be the surface area of the body and  its relative emittance. If ∆ Q heat
is radiated in ∆ t second, by Stefan’s law,
∆Q
= A ( T 4 T 40 )
∆t
where  is the Stefan’s constant.
Since T  T0 is small, let T  T0 = ∆ T
or T = T0 + ∆ T

( ( )T)= (( ))
4 4
∆Q ∆T ∆T
A ( ( T 0 +∆ T ) )
4 4 4 4
= T = A T 1+
0 0 A T
4
1+ 1
∆t 0
T0 0
T0
Expanding using binomial theorem, i.e
( 1+ x )n = 1 + nx + terms containing higher powers of x .

( )
4
∆T ∆T ∆T
Similarly, 1+ =1+4 + terms containing higher powers of .
T0 T0 T0
∆T ∆T
Since is very small, then the terms containing higher powers of can be neglected.
T0 T0

( )
4
∆T ∆T
Therefore, 1+ =1+4
T0 T0
∆Q
∆t =
4
(
∆T
A T 0 1+ 4 T 1
0
) = 4A T0 ∆T = 4A T0 ( T T 0 )
3 3

3
Since the factor 4A T0 is constant, we get
∆Q
∆t
= K( T T 0 ) ( K = 4 A T30 )
∆Q
or ¿ ro K ( ( + 273 ) ( 0 + 273 ) ) = K(❑0 )
∆t
This relation shows that the rate of loss of heat is proportional to the temperature excess of the
body over the surroundings. where K is a constant of proportionality whose value depends on
both the nature and the area of body’s surface.

Pré vost’s Theory of Heat Exchanges

Prevost argued that radiation of thermal energy is not one way traffic, with one body emitting
energy and another one receiving them. It should be considered as a mutual exchange between
two bodies.
When we sit before a fire, we fell warm. This is because our body is receiving more thermal
energy per unit area from the fire than it is losing by its own radiation. On the other hand when
we sit near a block of ice, we feel cold. This is because our body loses more heat by radiation
than what it receives from ice. Thus, when a body absorbs more radiant energy than what it
emits, there is rise in the temperature of the body.

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When a body absorbs less energy than what it emits, there is a fall in the temperature. However,
if the quantity of thermal energy absorbed is equal to the quantity of thermal energy emitted,
then there is no change in temperature of the body.
According to Prevost’s theory of heat exchanges all bodies emit thermal radiations at all
temperatures above absolute zero, irrespective of their surroundings. The amount of thermal
radiation emitted increases with rise in temperature. There is always an exchange of radiation
between a body and its surroundings. This exchange of thermal radiation causes rise or fall of
temperature.
A hot body emits more heat to the surroundings than it absorbs from the surroundings. So it loses
heat and cools down. This continues till the body attains the same temperature as that of the
surroundings. When the body is at the same temperature as that of the surroundings it radiates
and receives heat at the same rate and thereby a dynamic equilibrium is established.

Pré vost applied the idea of thermodynamic equilibrium to radiation. He asserted that when a
body is at the same temperature as its surroundings its rate of emission of radiation to the
surroundings equals its rate of absorption of radiation from the surroundings.
That is, there is dynamic equilibrium, and energy exchange continues and at a rate depending on
the temperature. It follows that a body which is a good absorber of radiation must also be a good
emitter of radiation otherwise its temperature would rise above that of its surroundings.

Spectral Emissivity: Kirchhoff’s Law

We have already seen that good absorbers are good emitters and poor absorbers are poor
emitters. This fact is quantitatively expressed by Kirchhoff’s law.
Kirchhoff’s law states that, at any given temperature, for radiations of the same wavelength, the
ratio of emissive power to the absorptive power of a body is constant and is equal to the
emissive power of a perfect black body.

Solar Constant
Solar constant is the amount of energy received per second per unit area of a perfectly black
body surface placed at the mean distance of the earth from the sun, in the absence of Earth’s
atmosphere, the surface being held perpendicular to the direction of the Sun’s rays. It is denoted
by the symbol K.
4
Power radiated by the Sun A s σ Ts
K= =
Tota surface area on which the sun’s radiation is incident normally 4π R
2

Estimation of surface temperature of the sun

We know that energy falling in one second on the unit area of the earth's surface held normal to
sun's rays is called solar constant K. Experimentally, K has been found to be equal to
1388 Wm 2. Let r s be the radius of the sun and d be the radius of earth's orbit around the sun. Let
E be the energy emitted by the sun per second per unit area. Then, the total energy emitted by the

Mwalonde,B. 0 714-053910/0767-053910 Page 51

 2
sun is one second = 4 π r s E. This energy is falling on a sphere of radius equal to the radius of the
Earth's orbit around the sun i.e., on a sphere of surface area 4πd 2
The energy falling per unit area is given by
4 π r 2s E r 2s E
K= = 2
4 π d2 d
4
but E =  TS
r 2s T 4S
K=
d2
K

( )
4 2
TS = r s
d

(( ) )
1/ 4
K
2
TS = rs
d
Here, K = 1388 Wm 2, r s = 6.96 × 108 m,
d = 1.496 × 108 m and  = 5.67 × 108 Wm 1 k 1

( )
1/ 4
1388

( )
2
Ts =
5.67 × 10 8
6.96 × 10
8
= 5799 K ≈ 5800 K
1.496 ×10 11

RADIATIVE BALANCE OF THE EARTH

 
In order to maintain a stable climate, the Earth must be in energetic equilibrium between
the radiation it receives from the Sun and the radiation it emits out to space. From this
equilibrium we can calculate the effective temperature TE of the Earth. The Earth
2
presents a disc of area πr E to the Sun The solar radiation flux is intercepted by the Earth
over a disk of cross-sectional area, Ac = π r 2E representing the shadow area of the Earth
( Fig.2.18).

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Assumptions
 Assuming that both earth and the sun are perfectly
black body.
 Assuming that the Earth and the sun are in
radioactive equilibrium.
The amount of power, PS , emitted by the Sun = 4πr 2s σ T 4S
π r 2E
Power received by the earth = 2
× Power radiated by the Sun, where π r 2E is the effective
4π d
area of the earth on which the sun’s radiation is incident normally and 4πd 2 is the total area on
which the sun’s radiation falls at a distance d from the sun where earth is situated.
Now power radiated by earth = 4πr 2E T 4E
Assuming the exchange is in a steady state, the amount of energy emitted by Earth must equal
the amount absorbed, and so
2 4 π r 2E
4πr E T E = 2
× 4πr 2s σ T 4S
4π d
4 r 2s
T E = 2
× T 4S
4d

TE = TS rs
2d √
For good approximation, TS = 5800 K, r S= 7× 105 km. The Earth is at a distance
d = 1.5× 108 km from the Sun. Substituting numerical values we obtain = 280 K

Radiation, Climate, and Climate Change

Our planet constantly absorbs radiation coming from the sun. In thermal equilibrium, the rate at
which our planet absorbs solar radiation must equal the rate at which it emits radiation into
space. The presence of an atmosphere on our planet has a significant effect on this equilibrium.
Most of the radiation emitted by the sun (which has a surface temperature of 5800 K) is in the
visible part of the spectrum, to which our atmosphere is transparent. But the average surface
temperature of the earth is only 287 K (14°C). Hence most of the radiation that our planet emits
into space is infrared radiation. However, our atmosphere is not completely transparent to
infrared radiation. This is because our atmosphere contains carbon dioxide, which is its fourth
most abundant constituent (after nitrogen, oxygen, and argon). Molecules in the atmosphere
have the property that they absorb some of the infrared radiation coming upward from the
surface. They then reradiate the absorbed energy, but some of the reradiated energy is directed
back down toward the surface instead of escaping into space. In order to maintain thermal

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equilibrium, the earth’s surface must compensate for this by increasing its temperature T and
hence its total rate of radiating energy.

The ability of the atmosphere to capture and recycle energy emitted by the Earth surface is the
defining characteristic of the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect is a process by which
thermal radiation from a planetary surface is absorbed by atmospheric greenhouse gases, and is
reradiated in all directions. Since part of this reradiation is back towards the surface and the
lower atmosphere, it results in an elevation of the average surface temperature above what it
would be in the absence of the atmospheric. If were absent, the earth’s average surface
temperature would be below the freezing point of water, and life as we know it would be
impossible. The trapping of the long wavelength radiation leads to more heating and a higher
resultant temperature. Some of the radiated energy (infrared) escape into the space and the rest is
absorbed by the atmosphere; the result is increasing of temperature so called global warming.

ALBEDO
Earth is one of the planet or satellites of the sun. All planets have no energy of their own; they
receive energy from the sun. Sometimes the temperature of the earth changes depending on the
transmission of radiation from the sun. Albedo is the ratio of energy of the sun reflected to that
energy received or absorbed by the earth. Some rays (radiation) reflected do not reach or
absorbed by the earth. The reflected radiations are due to the particles of the atmosphere which
reflect back the sun’s radiation. Thus the Albedo gives the information regarding to the presence
of atmosphere and clouds of the planet. The clouds in the atmosphere are good reflector of the
energy radiated by the sun, hence increasing the reflecting power in the planet and increases the
Albedo. The Earth has an albedo of 0.3, meaning that 30% of the solar radiation that hits the
planet gets scattered back into space without absorption.

Application of radiation in real life

Radiation can be found in:
(i) Teapots
Teapots have shiny surface and since shiny surfaces are bad emitters of radiation, shiny teapots
are able to keep the liquid in it warm for a longer period of time as compared to black-coloured
teapots. And in addition, shiny surfaces are bad absorbers, thus shiny teapots or container can
keep cold liquid cold for a longer period of time.
(ii) Greenhouses
Greenhouses are used in cold climates to help grow plants by trapping heat. Daytime, infrared
radiation from the sun passes through glass roof into the greenhouse. This warm up the plants
and help them grow. However, the plants too emits infrared radiation but the infrared radiation
emitted is different and cannot pass through the glass roof thus it gets trapped inside. Overtime,
the temperature in the greenhouse will increase.
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(iii) Vacuum/Thermos Flasks
The main use of the vacuum flasks is to keep the liquid in it hot by minimising the loss of heat
and it is done through four possible ways: conduction, convection, radiation and evaporation.
A body that is a good absorber must also be a good emitter. An ideal radiator, with an emissivity
of unity, is also an ideal absorber, absorbing all of the radiation that strikes it. Conversely, an
ideal reflector, which absorbs no radiation at all, is also a very ineffective radiator. This is the
reason for the silver coatings on vacuum (“Thermos”) bottles. The stopper of the
vacuum/thermos flasks is usually made of plastic which is a poor conductor of heat A vacuum
bottle has double glass walls. The air is pumped out of the spaces between the walls, this
eliminates nearly all heat transfer by conduction and convection since air is a poor conductor of
heat. To prevent radiation, the walls of the glass are silvered to radiant heat back into the
container to keep liquid hot, and the wall itself is a very poor emitter. Thus a vacuum bottle can
keep coffee or soup hot for several hours. The only time conduction and convection can occur is
when the plastic stopper is removed. However, heat loss through radiation is hard to stop as
radiant heat can even pass through vacuum

TYPICAL SOLVED EXAMPLES

Example 1. (a) (i) Explain what is meant by temperature gradient.

(ii) An ideally lagged compound bar 30 cm long consists of a copper bar 20 cm
joined to an iron bar 10 cm long and of equal cross-section diameter. The free
end of the copper is maintained at 90℃ and the free end of the iron at 10℃ .
Calculate the temperature gradient in each bar when steady state conditions

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 have been reached. The thermal conductivity values are: iron = 40 Wm 1 K 1 ;
copper = 360 Wm 1 K 1.

(b) A thermacole ice box is a cheap and efficient method for strong small quantities
of cooked food in summer in particular. A cubical ice box of side 30 cm has a
thickness of 5.0 cm. If 4.0 kg of ice is put in the box, estimate the amount of ice
remaining after 6 hours. The outside temperature is 45℃ , and the coefficient of
thermal conductivity of the material of the box = 0.01 Wm 1 K 1
(Heat of fusion of ice = 3.35 × 105 Jkg 1 ).

Solution
(a) (i) Temperature gradient at any position along the bar is defined as the change of
temperature per unit distance along the bar in the direction of flow of heat.
(ii) Let the temperature of copper – iron junction be .

If Q is the quantity of heat flowing across the slab in time t in steady state, we
Q ( 90 ) ( 10 )
have , = k cu A = ki A
t Lcu Li
360 ( 90 ) 40 ( 10 )
20
= 10
18 ( 90   ) = 4 (   10 )
405  4.5 =   10
5.5 = 415
 = 75.4 ℃

( 90 ) ( 90 75.4 )
Temperature gradient for copper = = = 0.73 ℃ / cm
Lcu 20
( 10 ) ( 75.4 10 )
Temperature gradient for iron = = = 6.45 ℃ / cm
Li 10

(b) Area through which heat is lost

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 A = 6 × are of one surface = 0.3× 0.3 × 6 = 0.54 m 2
Thickness, x = 5 cm = 0.05 m
Heat absorbed by the ice is given by
KA ( ❑1 2 ) t
Q = mL =
x
KA ( ❑1 2 ) t
m =
Lx
0.01 ×0.54 ×6 × 60 ×600 ( 45 0 )
= 5 = 0.313 kg
0.05 × 3.35 × 10
Mass of ice left in the box, = 4  0.313 = 3.687 kg

Example 2. A composite bar is made up of copper, aluminium and brass each having the same
area of cross- section and of equal length. If the free end of copper is kept at 100℃
and that of brass is kept at 0℃ . If the thermal conductivity of copper is twice that
of
aluminium and four time that of brass, calculate the temperature of copper-
aluminium and aluminium brass junctions.

For copper

(Qt )
copper
= kc A (100
L ) 1

For Iron

(Qt ) Aluminium
= ka A (L )
1 2

For aluminium

(Qt ) Brass
= kbA (L ) 2 0

At steady state

(Qt ) copper
=
Q
( )
t Aluminium
=
Q
t ( )
Brass

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 kc A ( )
100
L
1
(L ) = ka A 1 2
= kbA (L)
2 0

2k ( ) = k (L )
100 1 1 2
a a
L
2(100  1) = 1 2
3 1 2 = 200 ------------------------------------------ (i)
Similarly

kc A
(
100 1
L )
= kbA
L
2 0
( )
4 k b(100  1) = k b ( 2 0 )
4 (100 1 ) = 2
4 1 + 2 = 400 --------------------------------------- (ii)
Solving equations (i) and (ii) gives
1 = 85.7 ℃ and 2 = 57.2 ℃

The temperature of copper  iron and iron aluminium junctions are 85.7℃ and
57.2 ℃ respectively.

Example 3. Two perfectly lagged metal bars, A and B, are arranged (a) in series, (b) in
parallel. When the bars are in series the ‘ hot’ end of A is maintained at 100 ℃ and
the ‘cold’ end B maintained at 40 ℃ . When the bars are in parallel the ‘hot’ end of
each is maintained at 100 ℃ and the ‘cold’ end of each is maintained at 40 ℃ .
Calculate the ratio of the total rate of flow of heat in the parallel arrangement to that
in the series arrangement. The bars are of the same dimensions. The thermal
conductivity of A is twice that of B.

Solution
Let the length of each bar be L and the cross – sectional area of each is A.
(a) Series arrangement

When the bars are in series the rate of flow of heat is the same through each and
therefore if the temperature at the junction at the junction of the bars is  ,
Q
t
= kAA (100
L )
= kB A
L
40
( )
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 2k B A ( 100
L ) = kB A (L ) 40

2 (100  ) =   40
200  2 =   40
240 = 3
 = 80 ℃

Rate of flow of heat,

Q
t ( ) Series
= R S = kB A ( L80 40 ) =
40 k B A
L

(b) Slabs arranged in parallel.

When the bars are arranged in parallel the total rate of heat flow is given by

( )
Q
t parallel
=
Q
( ) ( )
+
t A t B
Q

= kAA (100
L
40
) + k A (B
100 40
L )
60 k A A 60 k B A
= + but k A = 2k B
L L

( )
Q
t parallel
= RP =
L
60 × 2 k B A
+
L
60 k B A
=
L
180 k B A

The ratio of the rates of heat flow is therefore,

180 k B A
Rp L
= = 4.5
Rs 40 k B A
L

Example 4. A cylindrical rod with one end in a steam chamber and the other end in ice results
melting 0.16 kg of ice per second. If the rod is replaced by another rod with one
quarter the length and double the radius of the first and if the thermal conductivity of
the second rod is three quarter of the first, find the rate at which ice results.
Solution

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 The rate of heat conducted on the rod is equal to the rate of heat for the melting ice

(
k1 A 1 1 2
L1 )
=L 1
m
t
------------------------------------------- (i)

m
, where L is the latent heat of fusion of ice and 1 is the rate at which ice melts.
t
Similarly, for the second rod,

(
k2 A 2 1 2
L2 )
=L 2
m
t
------------------------------------------- (ii)

Dividing eq (ii) by (i) we get,

( )
m2 ❑1❑2
L k2 A2
t L2
=
(L )
m1 ❑❑ 1 2
L k A
1 1
t 1

m2

m1
t
=
k2 A 2
k1 A 1
k
= 2
k1 ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) () ( )
×
π r 22
πr
2
1
×
L1
L2
k
= 2
k1
×
r 22
r
2
1
×
L1
L2
t

( ) () ( )
2
m2 k2 r2 L1 m1
= × × ×
t k1 r1 L2 t
3 1 m
Here, k 2 = k , r 2 = 2r 1 , L2 = L1 and 1 = 0.16 kgs 1
4 1 4 t

( ) ( ) ( )
2
m2 3k 1 2r 1 4 L2 3
= × × × 0.16 = × 4 × 4 × 0.16 = 1.92 kgs 1
t 4k1 r1 L2 4

Example 5. A boiler is made of aluminium plate 1.0 mm thick. The inner surface of the
aluminium plate is coated with a layer of tin of thickness 0.12 mm.The surface of
the plate is 160 cm2. The outside temperature of aluminium plate is 400℃ . Find
the
maximum amount of steam that could be produced per hour at atmospheric
pressure. The coefficient of thermal conductivities of aluminium and tin are
210 Wm 1 K 1 and 64 Wm 1 K 1 respectively.
( Specific latent heat of steam = 2.268 × 106 Jkg 1 )

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 Solution
Let the temperature of the interface be  . During the steady state the rate of heat
flow through aluminium is equal to the rate of heat flow through tin.

( )
Q
t Aluminium
=
Q
( )
t Tin

kAA
( )
LA
1
= kTA ( )
LT
2

210A (1400 ) = 64A (0.12100 )

25.2 ( 400 ) = 64 ( 100 )
10080  25.2 = 64  6400
89.2 = 16480
 = 184.8℃
Heat flowing through aluminium

per hour = k A A ( )
1
LA
×t = mL

210 × 0.016 × (
400 184.8
1 ×10
3 )
×60 ×60 = 2.268 × 106 m

m = 1.15 × 103 kg
Mass of steam produced in one hour, m = 1.15× 103 kg

Example 6. In order to minimize heat losses from a glass container, the walls of the container
are made of two sheets of glass, each 2 mm thick, placed 3 mm apart, the
intervening space being filled with a poorly conducting solid. Calculate the ratio of
the rate of conduction of heat per unit area through this composite wall to that which
would have occurred had a single sheet of the same glass been used under the same
internal and external temperature conditions. (Assume that the thermal conductivity
of glass and the poorly conducting solid are 0.63 and 0.049 Wm 1 k 1 respectively).

Solution
Let , be the respective temperatures of the outer faces of the two sheets, and
1 2

3, 4 their respective junction temperatures with the solid between them.

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 In the steady state, the quantity of heat per second per metre square is the same for
each. Let it be denoted by R 1. Then, for the first glass,

R1 =
Q
At (
=K 1 2
L )
LR 1 2 ×10 3 R 1 R
1 2= = = 1 ---------------------------------------- (i)
K 0.63 315
Similarly, for the solid,
3
LR 1 3 ×10 R 1 3 R1
2 3 = = = ---------------------------------------- (ii)
K 0.049 49
For the second glass,
LR 1 2 ×10 3 R 1 R
3 4 = = = 1 -------------------------------------- (iii)
K 0.63 315
Adding (i),(ii) and (iii),we get

1 4 = R1( 2
315
+
3
)
49
--------------------------------------- (iv)

For a single sheet of glass and the same internal and external temperatures 1 and
4 respectively, the quantity of heat per second per metre square, R 2 say, is given

from equation (iv) by

LR 2 2 ×10 3 R 2 R
1 4 = = = 2 ------------------------------------ ( v)
K 0.63 315
Hence, from (iv) and (v)
R1 (2
315
+
3
49 ) = 2
R
315

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 R1
= 0.04678 ≈ 0.05
R2

Example 7. Ice is forming at the surface of the pond. When it is 10 cm thick, the temperature of
the surface of the ice in contact with the air is  6℃ whilst the surface in contact
with water is at temperature 0 ℃ . Calculate the rate at which the thickness of ice
layer is increasing on the pond if thermal conductivity of ice is 2.3 Wm 1 K 1 , density
of ice = 0.91× 103 kgm 3 . and specific latent heat of fusion of ice = 3.26× 105 Jkg 1.
How long will it take for the thickness of the ice to become 10.1 cm ?.

Solution
Mass of ice formed = Volume × density of ice = Adx ρ
Heat given out by water = mL = Adx ρL
where L is the latent heat of fusion of ice.
This heat is conducted through the layer of ice
of thickness x .
Let K be the thermal conductivity of ice.
Heat conducted = KA ¿ ¿ dt
KA dt
It follows that, Adx ρL =
x
dx K dx
= , where is the rate of growth of the thickness of ice.
dt ρL x dt
dx 2.3 × 6
= 3 5 = 4.65× 10 7 m
dt 0.91 ×10 × 3.26× 10 × 0.1
dx
Rate of increment of thickness of ice = = 4.65× 10 5 cm/s
dt
The time taken for the layer of ice to increase its thickness from x 1 to x 2 is given by
t x2
ρL
∫ dt = K ∫ xdx
0 x1

[ ]
2 x2
ρL x ρL
t =
K 2
= 2 K ( x 22−x 21 )
x1
3 5
0.91 ×10 × 3.26× 10
t = ( 0.1012 0.12 ) = 2160.46 s
2 ×2.3 × 6

Example 8.The time taken by a liquid to cool from 70℃ to 60 ℃ is 5 minutes and cools to
52℃ in the next 5 minutes. calculate the room temperature and the temperature of
the body after another 5 minutes.

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 Solution
From Newton’s law of cooling,
Rate of fall of temperature ∝ mean difference of temperature between the body
and the surroundings .
∆
t (+
)
∝ 1 2 R , where R is the room temperature.
2
∆
t
= k ( 1
2
+2
R )
70
5
60
= k ( 705 + 60 ) R

2 =  k ( 65 R ) ----------------------------------------- (i)
For the second part
60 52
5
= k
5 (
60 + 52
R )
1.6 =  k ( 56 R ) ---------------------------------------- (ii)
Dividing equation (ii) by (i)
1.6 56 R
=
2 65 R
0.8 (65 R ) = 56 R

52  0.8 R = 56 R
0.2 R = 4
R = 20 ℃

Let  be the temperature after another 5 minutes

52
5
= k
52+
2 (R )
52   = 2.5 k (52 +   2 R ) = 2.5 k (52 +   40 )
From equation (i)

k= 
2
(
65 20
2
 45)
= 2.5 ( ) (12 +  ) =
2 1
52   (12 +  )
45 9
468  9 = 12 +  , solving for  , we get
 = 45.6 ℃

Example 9. A calorimeter of thermal capacity 29 Jk 1 contains 100 cm3 of oil and it

cools from 81 ℃ to 70 ℃ in 5 minutes, room temperature being 22℃ . When the
oil is replaced by 100 cm 3 of water , the water cools from 50℃ to 40 ℃ in
17 minutes. Determine the specific heat capacity of oil.

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 Specific heat capacity of water = 4.2 × 103 Jkg 1 k 1
Density of water , water = 103 kgm 3
Density of oil , oil = 0.920 gc m 3

Solution
According to Newton’s law of cooling
dQ
= kS ( R ) ------------------------------------------ (i)
dt
where S is the area of the body’s surface, R is the temperature of its surroundings,
k is a constant which depends on the nature of the surface of the calorimeter and Q
denotes the heat lost from the body. When the body loses heat Q, its temperature 
falls; if m is its mass, and c its specific heat capacity, then
dQ d
=  mc ------------------------------------------(ii)
dt dt
d
where is the rate of of fall of temperature of the body.
dt
d
mc =  kS( R )
dt
d kS
= dt
R mc
❑ t
d kS
Integrating, ∫ ❑ =  ∫ dt
❑ R mc 0 0

kS
[ loge ( R )] = 
0
mc
t

log e
( )
0
R

R
= 
kS
mc
t but m = ρv

log e
( )
0
R

R
= 
kS
ρVC
t

For oil
 = 70 ℃ , 0 = 81 ℃ , R = 22 ℃ , t = 5 minutes,
and ρ = 0.920 gcm 3 = 920 kgm 3

( )
log e
70 22
81 22
= 
kS
920V Coil
× 5×60

log ( ) = 
48 15kS
------------------------------------------
59 e
46V C oil

(iii)
For water
 = 40 ℃ , 0 = 50 ℃ , R = 22 ℃ , t = 17 minutes,

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 and ρ = 103 kgm 3 , c = 4.2 × 103 Jkg 1 k 1

( )
log e
40 22
50 22
= 
kS
1000 × 4200 V
× 17×60

log ( ) = 
18 17kS
e ------------------------------------------ (iv)
28 70000V

Dividing (iv) by (iii)

log e( )
18
28
=
17kS
70000V
15kS
log e( )
48
59 46V Coil
17 46V Coil
2.141322 = × = 7.447619× 10 4 c oil
70000 15
Coil = 2875.18 Jkg k 1 1

Example 10. A diode valve consists of two long co  axial cylinders. The inner cathode
cylinder of radius 0.5 mm radiates heat like a black body. The radius of the anode
cylinder is large compared with that of the cathode. The cathode heater element
dissipates one watt per centimeter length. If the steady anode temperature is 27 ℃
,
estimates the temperature of the cathode.
( Stefan’s constant,  = 5.67 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4 )

Solution

Let Tc and Ta be the temperatures of cathode of cathode and anode respectively.

Energy emitted by a hot cathode per second per metre length ,
P 1W
= = 100 Wm 1
L 10 2 m
Energy per second radiated by the hot cathode

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 P = A ( T c −T a ) , where A = 2πrL
4 4

P = 2πrL  ( T c −T a )
4 4

P
= 2πrL  ( T c −T a )
4 4
L
P /L
T 4c = + T 4a
2πr

( ) ( )
1/ 4 1/4
P/ L 4 100 4
Tc = +T a 3 = 8
+300 = 868.7 K
2πr 2π × 0.5× 10 ×5.67 × 10
 The temperature of the cathode, Tc = 868.7 K

Example 11. (a) An unlagged, thin  walled copper pipe of diameter 2.0 cm carries water at a
temperature of  233 ℃ above that of the surrounding air. Estimate the power
loss per unit length of the pipe if the temperature of the surroundings is 27 ℃
and the Stefan constant,, is 5.67 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4
State two important assumptions you have made.

(b) A solid copper sphere, of diameter 10 mm, is cooled to a temperature of  123

℃
and then suspended in an enclosure whose walls are at a temperature of 17 ℃ .
Calculate the Stefan’s constant if the temperature of the sphere rises by 4.1 ℃ in
every minute. State two assumptions you make.
( Assume density of copper = 8.9 × 10 kg m-3 , specific heat capacity of
3

copper = 3.70 × 10 J kg-1 k-1 ).

2

Solution
(a) Let T1 = temperature of the pipe = 40 + 300 = 340 K
T2 = temperature of surroundings = 27 +273 = 300 K
Assuming a thin  walled copper pipe to be black body
According to Stefan’s law, the power loss of the pipe is given by
P = A( T1 T2 )
4 4

P = 2πrL( T1 T2 )
4 4

P
= 2πrL( T1 T2 ) = 2π× 0.01× 5.67 × 10 8 × ( 340 4 300 4 )
4 4
L
P
= 18.75 Wm 2
L
 The power loss per unit length of the pipe, = 18.75 Wm 2

(b) Assumptions

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  Assuming copper sphere to be black body
 Assuming that all interchange of heat is by
by radiation
The energy per second gained from the surroundings is given by
P = A( T T0 ) , where A is the surface area of the = 4 π r 2 of the copper
4 4

sphere of radius r and  is the Stefan’s constant.

T =  123 ℃ = 150 K and T0 = 17 ℃ = 290 K
4
The mass m of the sphere = Volume ×density = π r 3 ρ , where ρ is the density of
3
∆
If c is the specific heat capacity of the solid copper sphere, and is the initial
∆t
rise per second of its temperature, then
∆
P = mc = A( T 4 T40 )
∆t
4 3 ∆
= 4 π r 2( T T40 )
4
πr ρ c
3 ∆t
1 ∆
= ( T T40 )
4
rρ c
3 ∆t
1 4.1
3 3
× 5× 10 × × 10 × 3.70× 10 ×
2
= ( 290 4 150 4 )
3 60
 = 5.7 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4

Example 12. A roof measures 20 m × 50 m and is blackened. If the temperature of the sun’s
surface is 6000 K, Stefan’s constant = 5.67 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4 , the radius of the
sun is 7.8 × 108 m and the distance of the sun from the earth is 1. 5 × 1011 m,
calculate how much solar energy is incident on the roof per minute, assuming
that half is lost in passing through the earth’s atmosphere, the roof being normal
to the sun’s rays.

Solution
Power radiated from the Sun = As σ T4s = 4πr 2s σ T 4s
Area of the roof
Power received by the roof = × Power radiated by the Sun
4π d 2
Ar
= × 4πr 2s σ T 4s
4π d 2
Assuming that half is lost in passing through the earth’s atmosphere,
1 Ar
( ) ()
2
2 4 Ar rs 4
P = × 4 π rs σ T s = × σ Ts
2 4π d 2 2 d
Solar energy incident on the roof per minute = power × time

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 ()
2
Ar rs 4
E = × σ Ts × t
2 d
Here, Ar = 20 m × 50 m = 1000 m 2 , r s = 7.8 × 108 m, R = 1.5 × 1011 m
T s = 6000 K , t 60 s and  = 5.67 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4

( )
8 2
1000 7.8 ×10
E = × × 5.67 × 10 8 ×6000 4 × 60 = 5.96 × 107 J
2 1.5 ×10
11

Example 13. (a) (i) State the Wien’s displacement law.

(ii) Explain why a body at 1000 K is ‘red hot’ whereas at 2000 K it is ‘white
hot.’
(iii) The temperature of the furnace is 2324℃ and the intensity is maximum in
its radiation spectrum nearly at 12000 Å . If the intensity in the spectrum of
a star is maximum nearly 48000Å, calculate the temperature of the star.

(b) A metal sphere of 1.0 cm diameter, is placed at the focus of a concave mirror
with aperture of diameter 60 cm directed towards the sun. If the solar radiation
falling normally on the earth is at the rate of 0.14 watt cm2, Stefan’s constant
is taken as 5.67 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4 and the mean temperature of the
surroundings is 27 ℃ , calculate the maximum temperature which the sphere
could theoretically attain, stating any assumptions you make in your estimation.

Solution
(a) (i) Wien’s Displacement Law states that for a black body, the wavelength
max for which the maximum amount of energy is radiated is inversely

proportional to its absolute temperature T in kelvins.

i.e maxT = a constant
(ii) When a a body is heated at1000 K , the visible wavelengths which are
emitted lie predominately at the red end of the spectrum and the body at
this temperature becomes red  hot. At temperature 2000 K the
proportions of the other spectral colours increase so that increasing
temperatures cause the overall colour of the body to change from red
through yellow to white.

(iii) According to Wien’s displacement law,

max T = a constant

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 i.e T1 = max2 T2
max1

❑max 1 T 1 1200 0 Å ×2324 K

T2 = = = 581 K
❑max 2 48000Å

(b) Let the maximum temperature attained by the metal sphere be T and the
temperature of surroundings be T0
Assumptions
 Assuming both the concave mirror and the metal sphere to be black
bodies.
 Assuming that all interchange of heat is by radiation

Solar radiation falling normally on the earth, k = 0.14 watt cm2 = 1400 Wm2
Power radiated by the concave mirror, P = Solar energy ×area of cross-section
P = 1400× π × 0.32 = 395.84 W
Energy per second radiated by sphere, P = A( T T0 ) = π d 2( T T0 )
4 4 4 4

( ) ( )
1/4 1/4
P 395.8 4 4
T = +T
4
0 = 2
+ 300
π × ( 1× 10 2 ) × 5.67 × 10 8
2
πd
T = 2171.4 K

Example 14. (a) The energy received by the earth from the sun is 1400 J/m2. Assuming that the
sun emits black body radiation and that the ratio of the earth orbit to the sun’s
radius is 216. Calculate the surface temperature of the sun.
( Stefan’s constant = 5.67 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4 ).

(b) A blackened platinum strip of area 0.20 cm2 is placed at a distance of 200 cm

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 from a white hot iron sphere of diameter 1.0 cm so that the radiation falls
normally on the strip. The radiation causes the temperature and hence the
resistance of the platinum to increase. It is found that the same increase in
resistance can be produced under similar conditions but in the absence of
radiation, when a current of 3.0 mA is passed through the platinum strip.
The potential difference between its ends being 24 mV. Estimate the
temperature of the iron sphere.

Solution
(a) Energy received by the earth from the sun is given by

Power radiated by the Sun

K=
Tota surface area on which the sun’s radiation is incident normally
4 2 4
A s σ Ts 4π r s σ T s
K = 2 = 2
4π d 4π d

()
2
4 rs
K = T s
d
d
Here; K = 1400 Wm 2 , = 216,  = 5.67 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4
rs

( )
2
rs
1400 = 5.67 × 10 × 8
T4s
216 r s
4
Ts = 1.152 × 1015
Ts = 5825.9 K

(b) Let Ts be the temperature of platinum strip.

Power received by platinum strip due to solar radiation is given by;

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 Area of the platinum strip
P = 2 × Power radiated by the hot iron sphere.
4π d
AP 2 4
P = 2 × 4πr s σ T s -------------------------------------------- (i)
4π d
Power received by the platinum strip in absence of solar radiation,
P=IV -------------------------------------------- (ii)
From equations (i) and (ii)
AP
× 4πr 2s σ T 4s = IV
4π d 2
AP
2 × r 2s σ T 4s = IV
d

( ) (( )
1/4 3 3 2 1/4
IV R2 24 × 10 ×3 × 10 × 2
Ts = 2 = 2 = 1785.3 K
r s σ AP 5 ×10 ) ×5.67 × 10 ×0.2 ×10
3 8 4

Example 15. (a) A solid copper sphere cools at the rate of 2.8 ℃ /¿ min when its temperature is
127℃ . At what rate will the solid copper sphere of twice the radius cool when
its temperature is 227 ℃ ? In both cases the surrounding are kept at 27 ℃ and
conditions are such that Stefan’s law may be applied.

(b) If the mean equilibrium temperature of the Earth’s surface is T and the total rate
of energy emission by the sun is E, show that

( )
1/4
E
T=
16 π R 2
where  the Stefan’s constant and R is the radius of the Earth’s orbit around
the sun. ( Assume that the Earth behaves like a black body ).
Estimate the value of T given that,
E = 4.52× 1026 W, R = 1.5× 108 km and  = 5.67 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4

Solution
(a) If Stefan’s law apply,
Net power, P net = A ( T b Ts )
4 4

where,  = emissivity of the solid copper sphere,  = Stefan’s constant,

A = area of crosssection of the solid sphere, T b = temperature of the solid
sphere and T s = surrounding temperature.
dQ d
Also, P net = = mc
dt dt
where m and c are the mass and spefic heat capacity of the solid sphere and

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 d
is the rate at which the sphere cools . It follows that,
dt
d
mc = A ( T 4b T4s )
dt
4 3 d
= 4 π r 2 ( T b Ts )
4 4
πr ρ c
3 dt
1 d
= ( T b Ts )
4 4
rρ c
3 dt
where  is the density of solid sphere.
Case 1:

( )
d
=
3
dt 1 r 1 c b 1
( T 4 T 4s ) ----------------------------------------- (i)

Case 2:

( )
d
=
3
(T 4
dt 2 r 2 c b 2
T 4s ) ----------------------------------------- (ii)

Dividing equation (ii) by (i)

( )
d
dt 2
=
( r1 ) (T b 2 T s )
×
4 4

( )
d
dt 1
(r2 ) (T 4b 1 T 4s )

Here, T b 1 = 127 ℃=¿ 400 K, T b 2 = 227 ℃=¿ 500 K, T s = 27 ℃ = 300 K

r 2 = 2 r 1 and (ddt )
1
= 2.8 ℃ / min

( r 1 ) ( 5 0 04 300 )
( )
4
d
= × × 2.8 = 4.35 ℃ /min
dt 2 ( 2r 1 ) ( 4004 300 )
4

 The solid copper sphere will cool at the rate of 4.35 ℃ /min

(b)

2
π rE
Power received by the earth = 2
× Power radiated by the Sun where π r 2E
4πd
is the effective area of the earth on which he sun’s radiation is incident

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 normally and 4π d 2 is the total area on which the sun’s radiation falls at a
distance d from the sun where earth is situated.
Now power radiated by earth = 4πr 2E σ T4 , where T is surface temperature of
the Earth
Assuming radioactive equilibrium,
Power radiated by earth = Power received by earth
2
2 4 π rE
4πr E σ T = 2
×E
4πd

( )
1/4
E
T= 2
16 π d
26 11 8 2 4
Given, E = 4.52× 10 W, R = 1.5× 10 m and  = 5.67 × 10 W m k

( )
1/4
4.52× 1026
T= 2 = 289.9 K
16 ×5.67 ×10 × 3.14 × ( 1.5× 10 )
8 11

PROBLEMS FOR PRACTICE

1. (a) (i) Define coefficient of thermal conductivity. Give its S.I.unit and dimensional formula
(ii) Cooking utensils are provided with wooden handles, why?

(b) An ice box is built of wood of thickness 1.75 cm.The box has an inner lining of cork
2.0 cm thick. If the difference in temperature between the interior of the box and outside is
12℃ , calculate the temperature of the interface between wood and cork. Thermal
conductivity of wood and cork are respectively 0.25 Wm -1 K -1 and 0.05 Wm 1 K 1 .
[ 10.2 ℃ , ]
2. An iron pan containing water boiling steadily at 100℃ stands on a hot plate and heat
conducted through the base of the pan evaporates 0.09 kg of water per minutes. If the base of
the pan has an area of 0.04m 2 and a uniform thickness of 20 cm.Calculate the surface
temperature of the pan. (Thermal conductivity of iron = 66 Wm 1 K 1 ,specific latent heat of
vaporization of water at 100℃ = 2.2× 106 J kg 1 ).
[ 350 ℃ ]

3. The ice on the pond is 30 mm thick. If the air temperature above the ice is  8℃ ,how long
will it take for the thickness of ice to increase to 40 mm? Given that thermal conductivity
of ice is 2.1 Wm 1 K 1 , density of ice is 0.91× 103 kg m 3 and specific latent heat of fusion
of ice is 3.3 × 105 J kg 1 . [ 6256.25 s ]

4. (a) (i) Explain why good thermal conductors are also good electrical conductors.
(ii) Describe the difference in conduction of heat through a well lagged bar and
a non- lagged bar.
.

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 (b) If a copper kettle has a base area of 3.0 cm 2 and 2.0 mm thick. Estimate the steady
difference in temperature between inner and outer surface of the base which must be
maintained to enable enough heat to pass through so that the temperature of 1.0 kg of
water rises at the rate of 0.49 Ks 1. Assuming that there is no heat losses, the thermal
conductivity of copper is 390 Wm 1 k 1and specific heat capacity of water
4200 J kg 1 K 1. After reaching the temperature of 373 K the water is allowed to boil
under the same conditions for one minute and the mass of water remained in the kettle is
0.948 kg. Deduce the value of specific latent heat of vaporization of water (neglecting
condensation of the steam in the kettle). [ 0.35 K, , 2.375 ×106 J kg 1 ]

5. One face of a sheet of cork, 3 mm thick, is placed in contact with one face of sheet of
glass 5 mm thick, both sheets being 20 cm square. The outer faces of this square
composite sheet are maintained at 100 ℃ and 20℃ ,the glass being at the higher mean
temperature Find,
(a) the temperature of the glass-cork interface,
[ 90 ℃ ]
(b) the rate at which heat is connected across the sheet, neglecting edge effects.

(Thermal conductivity of cork = 6.3× 105 Wm 11 k 1 , thermal conductivity

of glass = 7.2× 10 1 Wm 1 k 1 ). [ 57.6 W ]

6. Ice is forming at the surface of the pond. When it is 4.6 cm thick, the temperature of
the surface of the ice in contact with the air is 260 K whilst the surface in contact with
water is at temperature 273 K. Calculate the rate at which the thickness of ice layer is
increasing on the pond given that thermal conductivity of ice is 2.3 Wm 1 K 1 , density
of water is 1000 kgm 3 and specific latent heat of fusion of ice = 3.25× 105 Jkg 1.
How long will it take for the thickness of the ice to become 5.0 cm? [ 2× 10 6 m s 1 , 2087 s ]

7. Several cooking utensils for sale are rated high or low in terms of their thermal efficiency
for the following properties;
 thermal conductivity
 specific heat capacity
 coefficient of expansion and
 melting point
Explain briefly the thermal ratings you would observer with respect to each property in

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 purchasing a cooking utensil.

8. (a) (i) State Newton’s law of cooling.

(ii) What is the limitation of Newton’s law of cooling.

(b) A body initially at 80℃ cools to 64℃ in 5 minutes and to 52 ℃ in 10 minutes.

What will be the temperature after 15 minutes and what is the temperature of the
surroundings ? [ 43℃ , 16 ℃ , ]
.
9. (a) State Stefan’s law and Wien’s displacement law. Draw graphs showing the distribution
of energy in the spectrum of a black body. By considering how this energy is distributed
varies with temperature explain the colour changes which occur when a piece of iron is
heated from cold to near the melting point.

(b) The cylindrical element of a 1.0 kW electric fire is 30 cm long and 1.0 cm in diameter.
Taking the temperature of the surroundings to be 20℃ and Stefan’s constant to be
5.67× 10 8 Wm-2 k 4, estimate the working temperature of the element.
[ 897.7 ℃ ]

10.(a) (i) Explain what is meant by the Stefan’s constant, defining any symbol used
(ii) State Pré volt’s theory of heat exchange.

(b) A double-walled flask has two concentric spherical vessels, the inner vessel of radius
5.0 cm and the outer radius 6.0 cm.The surfaces of the vessels are blackened, and the
space between the vessels is evacuated. The inner vessel is filled with liquid sulphur at its
boiling point,  176℃ .It is found that when the temperature of the outer is 27℃ , the
sulphur evaporates at a rate of 0.29 gs 1.Calculate the value of Stefan’s constant.
Latent heat of evaporation of sulphur = 50 Jg 1 [ 5.76 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4 ]

11. (a) (i) Explain what is meant by a black body and black body radiation.
(ii) State Stefan’s law.

(b) A sphere of radius 2 cm with a black surface is cooled and then suspended in a large
evacuated enclosure the black walls of which are maintained at 27℃ .If the rate of change
of thermal energy of the sphere is 1.85 J s 1 when its temperature is  73℃ , calculate a
value for Stefan’s constant. [ 5.7 × 10 8 W m 2 k 4 ]

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12. (a) What do you understand by a black body?. In what respects does the radiation from a
black body at 2000 K differ from a black body at 1000 K ?. How would you devise a
black body to radiate at 1000 K ?

(b) A copper sphere, at a temperature 727℃ ,is suspended in an evacuated enclosure the
walls of which are maintained at 27℃ .If the radius of the sphere is 5.0 cm,and if
conditions are such that Stefan’s law is obeyed, calculate the initial rate of fall of
temperature of the sphere stating any assumptions you make in your estimation.
( Density of copper = 9.0× 103 kgm-3 ; specific heat capacity of metal = 400 Jkg -1 K 1 ;
Stefan’s constant = 5.67× 10 8 Wm 2 k 4 ). [ 0.94 K s 1 ]

13. (a) What is meant by the solar constant?

(b) The energy arriving per second at the earth from the sun, is about 1400 Wm-2.
Estimate the surface temperature of the sun, given that the sun’s radius = 7.0× 105 km,
the distance of the sun from the earth = 1.5× 108 km and Stefan’s constant
 = 5.67× 10 8 Wm 2 [ 5802.7 K ]

CHAPTER 3

THERMODYNAMICS

When the two words thermal energy and mechanical energy are coined we get the word
thermodynamics, which deals with the relation between heat and mechanical energy. But we
know that energy can be converted from one form into another. Hence thermodynamics deals
with heat and its inter-relationship with other forms of energy like mechanical, electrical,
magnetic chemical etc.
Thermodynamics deals with processes which involve energy changes as a result of heat flow to
or from a system and/or work done on or by a system. A thermodynamic system consists of a
fixed mass of matter, often a gas, separated from its surroundings, perhaps by a cylinder and a
piston.

Heat engines such as a petrol engine, a steam turbine and a jet engine all contain thermodynamic
systems designed to convert heat into mechanical work. Heat pumps and refrigerators are
thermodynamic devices for transferring heat from a cold body to a hotter one.

Heat and work

Heat and work are terms used to describe energy in the process of transfer:
 Heat is energy that flows from one body to another because of a temperature difference
between them.

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  Work is energy that is transferred from one system to another by a force moving its point
of application over a distance.

Energy may be transferred to or from a system as heat or work and afterwards it is impossible to
tell which form it took. The energy in a sytem, whether transferred to it as heat or work. is called
internal energy.

Laws of Thermodynamics

1. Zeroth law and thermal equilibrium

Let a hot body be brought in thermal contact with a cold body. The two bodies shall begin to
share their internal energy by molecular collisions. The total internal energy of the molecules of
the hotter body will start decreasing. The total internal energy of the molecules of the cold body
will begin to increase. This process of transfer of internal energy from one body to another,
caused by a difference of temperature, without doing work is called heat exchange. A stage will
be reached when there is no net transfer of internal energy from one body to the other.
At this stage, the two bodies will be at the same temperature and they will be said to be in
thermal equilibrium with each other.
The zeroth law of thermodynamics states that if two bodies A and B are each separately in
thermal equilibrium with a third body C, then A and B are in thermal equilibrium with each
other.
Thus, if C is a thermometer and reads the same when in contact with A or B, then A and B are at
the same temperature and are in thermal equilibrium if A and B were put in contact with each
other, no heat would flow between them

2. First law and internal energy.

In practice, when a certain quantity of heat is supplied to a system, the whole of the heat energy
may not be converted into work. A part of the heat may be used in doing external work and the
rest of the heat may be used in increasing the internal energy of the system.
Consider a gas enclosed in a cylinder fitted with
a frictionless and nonconducting piston. Let the
walls of the cylinder except the bottom be thermally
insulated. Let the gas be supplied by an amount
dQ of heat. This heat energy shall cause
(i) an increase in the temperature of the gas,
(ii) an upward movement of the piston. Increase
in temperature means an increase in the internal
energy of the gas dU . Upward movement of the
piston means that an external work dW is done by
the gas.
Applying the law of conservation of energy,

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dQ = dU + dW
This equation is the mathematical statement of the first law of thermodynamics and is a
particular case of the principle of conservation of energy. In words, it can be stated as under:
If some quantity of heat is supplied to a system capable of doing external work, then the
quantity of heat absorbed by the system is equal to the sum of the increase in the internal
energy of the system and the external work done by the gas.
i.e. d Q = d U + d W, where
d Q = amount of heat energy supplied to the system.
d U = increases in internal energy for the system.
d W = external work done by the gas.
When the heat is supplied to a system, dQ is taken as positive, when heat is transferred from the
system,dQ is taken as negative.dW is positive when a chemical system expands against the
environment and hence the system transfers energy to the surroundings; anddW is negative when
the system contracts and the system absorbs energy from surroundings.

Significance of First law of Thermodynamics

First law of thermodynamics expresses the relation between heat and work. This law signifies
that heat can only be produced at the expenditure of some other form of energy ( i.e. it tells us
that it is impossible to get work from any machine without giving an equivalent amount of
energy).
Limitations of the First law of Thermodynamics
 The law does not tell us anything about the condition under which the body can convert
heat to work or how much heat can be converted into work.
 It does not tell us the direction of transfer of heat (i.e it does not explain to why heat
cannot flow from cold body to a hot body ) because energy would still be considered.
 The law is silent as to why the whole heat cannot be converted in mechanical work
continuously.
The internal energy of a gas consists of two components.
(i) Kinetic energy due to the translational, rotational and vibrational motion of the molecules, all
of which depend only on the temperature.
(ii) Potential energy due to the intermolecular forces; this depends on the separation of the
molecules,i.e the volume of the gas

In an ideal gas only the kinetic component is present and the kinetic theory shows that the
3
translational part of it equals RT per mole. For real gases, both components are present with
2
the kinetic form predominating and their internal energy depends on the temperature and the
volume of the gas. Thus, internal energy of a system is equal to the sum kinetic energy and
potential energies of all the constituent particles in the system. It is denoted by U.

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Work done by an expanding gas.
Work is said to be done when force is applied on a system and the system moves in a direction of
the force. Consider a mass of gas enclosed in a cylinder by a frictionless piston of cross  section
area A which is in equilibrium under the action of an external force F acting to the left and a
force due to the pressure P of the gas acting to the right ( Fig.3.2).

Force
Gas pressure = , so force = pressure× area, i.e. F = PA.
Area
The piston is held in position by the force PA exerted by the gas and the external force F
Suppose that the gas expands, moving the piston outwards through a distance dx which is so
small that P can be taken as practically constant during the expansion. The external work done
dW by the gas against F is given by
d W = Fdx = PAdx = PdV , where dV (= Adx ) is the increase in volume of the gas.
The total work done W by the gas in a finite expansion from V 1 to V 2 is given, in calculus
notation, by
V2

W = ∫ dW = ∫ PdV
V1

W = P ( V 2−V 1) = P∆ V

PV diagram  Graphical representation of Work

PV diagram is a graph between the volume V of a system and the pressure P of the system.
The volume is plotted against the x−axis while the pressure is plotted against the y−axis . These
diagrams are drawn with the help of a device called the indicator, which directly registers the
changes in volume due to the motion of the piston in the cylinder and the corresponding pressure
(See Fig.3.3). The work done by a system can be found out by drawing a graph.
Work done by the gas is given by,
V2

W =∫ PdV = Area under the curve

V1

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The total work done in the finite expansion from V1 to V2 equals the area under the graph.
V2

i.e., W = ∫ PdV = Area under the PV curve

V1

Specific Heat Capacity and Heat Capacity

The quantity o heat energy required to raise the temperature of unit mass of a body through one
Kelvin is called its specific heat capacity, denoted by C. The S.I. unit of C is J kg 1 k 1 .
The specific capacity of water is 4200 J kg 1 k 1 .This means that the amount of heat required to
raise the temperature of one kg of water through one Kelvin is 4200 J .
The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of m kg of a body through dT K is
dQ = mcdT or d Q = mcd 
The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of the whole body through one Kelvin is
called its heat capacity.
dQ mc d
i.e., heat capacity = = = mc
dT dT

PRINCIPAL HEAT CAPACITIES OF A GAS

Recall that the heat capacity of something is the amount of heat required to raise its temperature
by 10C (or 1K).When a solid or liquid is heated their expansion is very small and may be
neglected. But when a gas is heated its volume and pressure change to a greater extent. So for a

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gas the amount of heat required to raise the temperature by 1K will depend on the condition
under which it is heated.

Consider heat being supplied to a gas trapped in a cylinder by a piston, as in the earlier diagram.
The heat required to warm the gas by 10C will depend upon how much the gas expands, since
heat is needed to:
 increase the internal energy of the gas, and
 provide the energy for any external work done by the gas in expanding and pushing back
the outside atmosphere.

Now, between the original position of the piston and any other position there are an infinite
number of possible intermediate positions, and so there are an infinite number of different
amounts of external work that might be done, and so a gas has an infinite number of possible
heat capacities. However, only the simplest two are important, called its principle heat
capacities. These relate to:
 constant volume, in which the piston is not allowed to move at all.
 constant pressure, in which the piston is allowed to move freely, keeping the gas pressure
equal to the outside pressure

1. Specific Heat Capacity at constant Volume CV . It is defined as the quantity of heat required
to raise the temperature of 1 kg of a gas through 1K at constant volume. Its S.I. unit is J kg 1 k 1 .
2. Specific Heat Capacity at constant Pressure, Cp : It is defined as the quantity of heat
required to raise the temperature of 1 kg of a gas through 1K at constant Pressure. Its S.I. unit is
J kg 1 k 1 .
If instead of 1 kg, one mole is used then it is called molar specific heat capacity at constant
volume or pressure
Molar Specific Heat Capacity at constant volume CV is defined as the amount of heat required
to raise the temperature of one mole of a gas through one kelvin at constant volume.
dQ
i.e CV = . Its S.I. unit is J mol 1 k 1.
ndT
Molar Specific Heat Capacity at constant pressure Cp is defined as the amount of heat
required to raise the temperature of one mole of a gas through one kelvin at constant pressure.
dQ
i.e CP = . The S.I. unit of Cp is J mol 1 k 1.
ndT

Relation between Cp and CV

Suppose that one mole of an ideal gas is heated at constant volume so that its temperature
increases by dT . It follows from the definition of CV that the heat supplied d Q is given by
d Q = CV dT
Since there is no change in volume, the external work done d W is zero. From the first law of
thermodynamics we have,

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d Q = d U + d W, but d W = PdV = 0
CV dT = d U, where d U is the increase in internal energy of the gas. It is important to note that
the internal energy of an ideal gas depends only on its temperature.
Now suppose that one mole of the same gas is heated at constant pressure so that its temperature
increases bydT . It follows from the definition of Cp that the heat supplied d Q is given by
d Q = CP dT
The external work done d W = PdV , where dV is the change in volume and P is the constant
pressure. From the first law of thermodynamics,
dQ = dU + dW
CP dT = d U + PdV
CP dT = CV dT + PdV ----------------------------------------------- (i)
From an ideal gas equation of one mole,
PV = RT, so that
P( V +dV ) = R ( T + dT )
PV + PdV = RT + RdT
PdV = RdT
Substituting for PdV in equation (i) gives
CP dT = CV dT + RdT
C P = CV + R
C P  CV = R -------------------------------------------(ii)

Equation (ii) shows that C P >C V due to the following facts;

In case of C V the volume is kept constant. When a gas is heated at constant volume, the entire
heat energy supplied is used to increase the internal energy of the gas molecules. But in case of
C P the pressure is kept constant, but volume changes. So when a gas is heated at constant
pressure, the heat supplied to the system is used for two purposes: (i) to increase the internal
energy of the molecules (ii) for doing mechanical work in expanding the gas against the
opposing constant pressure.Thus, in this case an additional amount of heat equivalent to the work
done is also absorbed. So it is generally that the specific heat of a gas at constant pressure, CP,is
greater than its specific heat at constant volume, CV . i.e CP >C V .

Note: The heat capacity at constant volume is more important because it is intimately related to
the internal energy of a chemical system. This can be seen from the first law of thermodynamics
where dW = Pd V = 0, if V is constant. Then d Q = n C V d T = d U
dU
For one mole, C V d T = d U or C V = .
dT
Thus C V gives direct information on the internal energy.

Degrees of Freedom and the Law of Equipartition of Energy.

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The degree of freedom means the number of independent ways molecules can posses energy.
force. Particles in gas phase show movement in all directions of space.In the section headed the
'Kinetic theory of matter' we considered monatomic gases. We must now extend the ideas to
cover gases of higher atomicity, that is, molecules with more than one atom per molecule.
1
If we go back to the kinetic theory formula, PV = Nmc 2 = RT, where N is the number of
3
2
molecules in one mole. You can see that RT = [average kinetic energy of the molecules]
3
1
since kinetic energy = Nmc 2.
2
3
Therefore, average kinetic energy of the gas molecules = RT. We have considered the motion
2
of these molecules to be in three directions, in other words we say that the molecule has three
degrees of freedom. It is therefore sensible to suppose that for any dynamical system in thermal
equilibrium the total energy is equally distributed among all the degrees of freedom, and this is
known as Boltzmann's law of equipartition of energy. Thus each degree of freedom has an
1
amount of energy RT associated with it.
2
If a gas has its temperature raised at constant volume the energy input is the increase in kinetic
energy of the gas molecules. So for a unit mass and for a rise in temperature dT we have:
3
C V dT = kinetic energy increase = RdT, whereC V is the specific heat capacity of the gas at
2
constant volume.

1. Monatomic gases
Figuring out the degree of freedom for monatomic gases is simple
because internal is stored only in the translational motion of the atoms.
That is, the atoms move as a point-like body and can move in three
independent directions. For a monatomic gas, there are three translational
degrees of freedom corresponding to the three axes of movement
( Fig.3.4). As its rotational moment of inertia is very low
(due to small atomic radius), the degree of freedom associated with
rotation does not make an appreciable contribution to the kinetic
energy ( i.e. rotational kinetic energy is negligible).Therefore,
a monatomic gas has 3 degrees of freedom.
Degree of freedom n = 3 (all translational).
3
We know that the average energy of a monatomic molecule for temperature T is kT.
2
Since a monatomic gas has 3 degree of freedom, then average K.E in each degree of freedom
1 3 3
is kT and the total energy of all the N molecules = U = NkT = RT ( R = Nk )
2 2 2

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 dU 3 3 5
CV = = R , but C P = C V + R = R + R = R
dT 2 2 2
If  denotes the ratio of the Principal heat capacity at constant pressure to that at constant volume
of the gas then,
5
R
CP 2 5
= = = = 1.67
Cv 3 3
R
2

2. Diatomic gases
A gas with two atoms to the molecule is said to be diatomic gas eg O2 , H2 ,N2 , Cl 2. A molecule
of a diatomic gas is regarded as a ‘dumb-bell’. For a diatomic gas, in addition to the three
degrees for motion, there are two degrees of rotatory motion around axes perpendicular to the
bond between the atoms. In these cases both translational and rotational motion can
contribute to the heat capacity.
Total degree of freedom , n = 5 (3 translational +2 rotational).

Consider one mole of a diatomic gas. If we assume that the energy

associated with each rotational degree of freedom is the same as that
for each translational degree of freedom then the total energy of the
1 5
N molecules for 5 degree of freedom = 5 × RT = RT
2 2
Using the same argument as for the monatomic gas, we have
for the two principal molar specific heats of a diatomic gas:
dU 5
CV = = R
dT 2
5 7
But C P = C V + R = R + R = R
2 2
7
R
Cp 2 7
= = = = 1.4
Cv 5 5
R
2

3.Polyatomic
A polyatomic (non-linear) molecule (such as NH3) can rotate about
any of three co-ordinate axes. Hence it has 6 degrees of freedom
( 3 translational + 3 rotational ).
Consider one mole of a polyatomic gas. Energy associated

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 1
with one molecule for 6 degree of freedom = 6 × kT = 3 kT
2
6
Total energy of N molecules = U = NkT = 3RT
2
dU
CV = = 3R
dT
But C P = C V + R = 3R + R = 4 R
Cp 4R 4
= = = = 1.33
Cv 3R 3

Suppose a polyatomic gas molecule has n degrees of freedom of the molecules. The total internal
1
energy per molecule = U = n × kT
2
n n
Total energy of N molecules = U = NkT = RT
2 2
dU n
CV = = R
dT 2
n
But C P = C V + R = RT + R = R T +1
2 (
n
2 )
=
CP
=
( n
R T +1
2 )
=
n+2
=1+
2
Cv n n n
R
2
The ratio of the specific heat capacities of a gas  thus gives information about the number of
atoms in the molecule of the gas. These results show very good agreement with theory.
Thermodynamic Processes
The changes to which a system (e.g, gas) may be subjected are of various kinds. For example, a
system may absorb heat while it is kept at constant volume or constant pressure or constant
temperature. If a system can exchange both matter and energy with the surroundings it is called
open system. If the system exchanges only energy with the surroundings it is called closed
system.

Reversible changes
To calculate work done using W = P(V2 V1), we assume that P is the same at every stage of the
change. This implies that the system is in equilibrium (i.e. all its parts are at the same
temperature and pressure) at every instant of the change. Thus, during a change we regard a
system as passing through an infinite series of states of equilibrium. Since it would be possible to
take the system back through the same set of equilibrium states, such a change is said to be
reversible.

Irreversible Process

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Any process that cannot be retraced in the reverse order and in opposite sense is called an
irreversible process. For example, dissolving of soap in water, decay of matter, rusting of iron
etc.
Isochoric / Isovolumetric Processes
A thermodynamic process that takes place at constant volume is called isochoric process.
Example of isochoric process is the explosion of petrol vapour and air in petrol engine.
During explosion just before the power stroke the volume remains constant, and there is a
sudden rise in temperature and pressure .
According to the first law of thermodynamics
dQ = dU + dW
d Q = CV dT + PdV but dV = 0
d Q = d U = CV dT .
This means that the heat energy absorbed by the system is fully used to increase the internal
energy of the system.

Isobaric Process
A thermodynamic process that takes place at constant pressure is called isobaric process. When
heat is given to the system the volume and temperature change without any change is pressure.
Examples for isobaric process include:
(i) vaporization of liquid at its normal boiling point under constant pressure. The amount of heat
required to convert one kg of a liquid at its boiling point vapour at the same temperature is
called latent heat of vaporization, under normal atmospheric pressure.
Consider a liquid of mass m kg at its boiling point T and pressure P.Suppose the volume of the
liquid is V 1. The liquid absorbs ∆ Q = mL heat and is converted into vapour of volume V 2 at the
same temperature where L is the latent heat of vaporization.
Work done during isobaric process is given by
v2

W= ∫ PdV = P ( v 2−v 1 ) = P∆ V
v1

According to the first law of thermodynamics, total heat supplied, d Q = d U + d W

mL = d U + PdV
The change in internal energy = d U = mL  P ( V 2−V 1)

(ii) Melting. In the case of melting, a solid of mass m and volume V 1 absorbs a heat ∆ Q = mL
and is converted into liquid at its normal melting point under constant pressure. L is the latent
heat of fusion which is the amount of heat required to convert one kg of solid at its normal
melting point into liquid at the same temperature.

Isothermal change

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This is a thermodynamic process that occurs at a constant temperature. Isothermal changes are
typically slow changes, since heat has to have time to enter or leave the system to keep its
temperature constant.
Conditions for isothermal process to take place
 the gas must be held in a thin  walled vessel of good conductivity.
 the expansion must take place very slowly, so that the system remains in equilibrium
throughout the process.

Examples for isothermal process are:

 Melting at constant pressure. During melting the temperature remains constant. But there
is an increase in internal energy due to the change of phase from liquid to vapour.
 Boiling at constant pressure. During boiling the temperature remains constant. Here also
there is an increase in internal energy due to the change of phase from solid to liquid.
 Slow expansion or compression of an ideal gas at constant temperature.

Now, if T = constant, then d T = 0 and hence dU = n C V d T = 0.

So, according to the first law of thermodynamics,
dQ = dU + dW
d Q = 0 + d W = d W = P dV
So, in an isothermal expansion, the heat supplied to the gas equals the work done by the gas
(and conversely for an isothermal compression).Also, since the temperature is constant, the
expansion curve follows a Boyle’s law PV curve:

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The area enclosed by the graph and the axes, between volumes V1 and V2, equals the work done
during the volume change. When the gas expands isothermally, dV is positive and so d W and d
Q will also be positive but when a gas is compressed isothermally, dV is negative and so d W and
d Q will also be negative.

Work Done during Isothermal Process

Suppose an ideal gas is allowed to expand very slowly at constant temperature .The work done
by the gas in expanding from state A to state B is given by
V2

W= ∫ PdV
V1

For an ideal gas, PV = nRT, where n = number of moles

V2 V2
nRT dV
W=∫ dV = nRT ∫
V2
= nRT [ ln V ]V
V
V 1 V
V 1
1

W = nRTln ( ) v2
v1

or W = 2.303nRT log 10 ( )v2

v1
For an isothermal process, P1 V 1 = P2 V 2 ,
v2 P1
so that =
v1 P2

W = 2.303nRT log 10 ( )
P1
P2

For real gas

The Van der Waals equation of state an approximate representation of the behaviour of gases at
high pressure is given by

( )
2
an
P+ 2 ( V n b ) = n RT
V
where a and b are constants having different values for different gases.

( a
)
or P+ 2 (V b ) = RT , for n mole.
V
RT a
P=  2
( V −b ) V

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 V2

W=∫
V1
( RT a
)
− 2 dV
( V −b ) V
V2 V2

=∫
V1
( ( VRT−b) ) dV  ∫ Va dV
V1
2

[ Vb ] V +a[ ]
V2 V2
= RT ln ( )
1 1
V1 V1

W = RT(
v −b ) ( v v ) ( v −b ) ( v v )
v −b
2 1 1 v −b 2 v −v 1 2
+ a − = RT + a
1 2 1 1 1 2

Adiabatic Process
This is a thermodynamic process that occurs without heat entering or leaving the system.
To prevent heat flow, the system is perfectly insulated from the surroundings. Adiabatic changes
are typically rapid changes, in which heat does not have time to enter or leave the system,
for example:
 air escaping an exploding tyre,
 expansion of hot gases in internal combustion engine,
 sounds waves with rapid compressions and expansions of air as the sound wave travels
 expansion of steam in the cylinder of a steam engine.

Now, if d Q = 0, then according to the first law of thermodynamics, we have

0 = dU + dW
dW =  dU
This implies that for doing work the necessary energy is absorbed from its internal energy.
Negative sign shows that when work is done by the system, its internal energy decreases.
So, in an adiabatic expansion, all the work done is at the expense of the internal energy of the
gas, and so the temperature of the gas falls. Conversely, in an adiabatic compression, work is
done on the gas by an external agent, increasing the internal energy and so the temperature of the
gas rises. In order to achieve this we isolate the system from its surroundings or ensure that the
process takes place very quickly.  Heat takes time to flow, if the process is performed quickly
enough, it is a good approximation that no heat enters or leaves.

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Notice that the slope (gradient) of the adiabatic curve through any point is greater than the slope
of the isothermal curve through the same point.
Boyle’s law (PV = a constant) assumes that the temperature is constant, and so does not apply to
an adiabatic change.

Equation for an Adiabatic Process

Consider a system consisting of one mole of a perfect gas. Let the system absorb dQ amount of
heat and do dW amount of external work. Then from the first law of thermodynamics,
dQ = dU + dW ------------------------------------------(i)
where the increase in internal energy dU is given by the relation
dU = CV dT ,where CV is the molar specific heat capacity at constant volume and dT is the rise
in temperature. But for adiabatic process no heat is allowed to enter or leave the system,
so, dQ = 0 and therefore from equation (i) we have,
CV dT + dW = 0
But dW = PdV where dV is the change in volume.
CV dT + PdV = 0
PdV
dT =  ------------------------------------- (ii)
CV
For a perfect gas
P V = RT ---------------------------------------(iii)
Differentiating equation (iii) we have
d ( PV ) = d ( RT )
PdV
VdP + PdV = RdT but dT = 
CV

VdP + PdV = R (CPdV )

V

V CV dP + P CV dV =  R PdV
V CV dP + PdV ( C V + R ) = 0 ------------------------------------- (iv)

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But C V + R = C P
Thus equation (iv) takes the form
CV VdP + P C P dV = 0
P C P dV =  CV VdP
CP dV dP CP
. =  , where  = is the ratio of the two principal specific heat capacities.
CV V P CV
dV dP

V
=  P
On integrating we have,
V2 P2
dV dP
∫ = ∫
V1
V P1
P
V2 P2
 [ ln V ] =  [ ln P ] P
V1 1

 ( ln V 2 −ln V 1 ) =  ( ln P2−ln P 1)

 ln ( )
V2
V1
=  ln ( ) ( )
P2
P1
= ln
P1
P2

( ) ( )
❑
V2 P1
In = ln
V1 P2
❑ ❑
P1 V 1 = P2 V 2
P V = a constant ----------------------------------------------------- (i)
where  ( Greek letter ‘ gamma’) is the ratio of two principle heat capacities.i.e.,
CP
 =
Cv
Now, since, C P = C v + R and R is positive, then C P ¿ C v and hence  ¿1.
Equation (i) represents adiabatic process relating pressure and volume

Equation for adiabatic process relating temperature and volume.

For one mole of a gas,the gas equation is
RT
PV = RT , P =
V
From P V = a constant
RT
× V = a constant
V
T V 1 = a constant -------------------------------------------------- (ii)
Equation for adiabatic process relating temperature and pressure
From an ideal gas equation,
RT
V =
P
But P V = a constant

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P
RT
( )
P
= a constant
RT
P× = a constant
P
1 a constant
TP =
R
TP
1
= a constant --------------------------------------------------- (iii)

Work done during Adiabatic Process

Consider one mole of a perfect gas contained in a cylinder having non- conducting cylinder fitted
in a non – conducting piston. Let the gas expand from a volume V 1to V 2 adiabatically. Work
done
by the gas for a small increase in volume dV is dW = PdV where P is the pressure at that
instant.
Total work done during the adiabatic expansion is given by
V2

W = ∫ PdV
V1

But for an adiabatic process P V = a constant = K

K
P= = KV
V

[ ]
V2 V2
V +1
W = ∫ K V dV = K
V 1
+1 V1

1
=
1
( K V 12 K V 11)
❑ ❑
But P1 V 1 = P2 V 2 = K
1
W=
1
( P2 V ❑2 V 12 P1 V ❑1 V 11 )
1
=
1
( P 2 V 2 P1 V 1 )
1 P V P V
W= ( )
−¿ ¿ 1 1 2 2
1
= ( P 1 V 1 P2 V 2 )
1
1
W= ( P 1 V 1 P2 V 2 )
1
If T 1 is the initial temperature and T 2 the final temperature then,
P1 V 1 = RT 1 and P2 V 2 = RT 2
1
W=
1
( R T 1 R T2)

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 R
W =
1
(T 1 T 2)
CP
But,  =
CV
R
R Cv
W = CP ( T 1T 2) = (T 1T 2)
1 CP Cv
CV
R Cv
= ( T 1 T 2 ) = CV ( T 1 T 2 )
R
For n moles
W = nCV ( T 1 T 2 )

Comparison between Isothermal and Adiabatic Processes

In an adiabatic expansion the internal energy of the gas decreases and the temperature of the gas
falls. This results in a lower final pressure (PV = nRT ) than that produced by the isothermal
expansion.

Note that area under the isothermal expansion is greater than that under adiabatic
i.e more work is done by isothermal expansion than by adiabatic expansion.
We see that adiabatic is steeper than isothermal ( See Fig.3.9 ).

Relation Connecting Slope of Isothermal and Adiabatic Curve

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 For an isothermal process, PV = a constant
Differentiating, d ( PV ) = d( a constant )
PdV + VdP = 0

( )
dP
dV iso
= 
P
V
The slope of the isothermal curve

( )
dP P0
at ( P 0 V 0 ) is = 
dV iso V0
For an adiabatic process, P V = a constant
Differentiating we have,
γ −1 γ
Pγ V dV + V dP = 0
γ P γ
V dP =  γ V dV
V
The slope of adiabatic curve at ( P 0 V0 )

( )
dP P0
is therefore, = γ
dV ad V0
From equation (i) and (ii) we find that the
absolute value of the slope of the adiabatic
is γ times that of the isothermal.

i.e |( ) | |( ) |
dP
dV ad
=γ
dP
dV iso

Hence the adiabatic curve is steeper because the specific heat ratio γ is greater than 1.

Differences between Isothermal and Adiabatic Processes

Isothermal process Adiabatic process
Temperature remains constant, No heat is added or removed,
∆
e.i T = 0 i.e ∆ Q = 0
The sytem is thermally conducting to the The system is thermally insulated
Surroundings from the surroundings
No change in internal energy of the There is a change in internal
System energy of the system
Equation of the process is PV = constant Equation of the process is
P Vγ = constant

TYPICAL SOLVED EXAMPLES

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Example 1. (a) The first law of thermodynamics may be written as Q = U +  W. Explain
the meaning of this equation as applied to the heating of a gas. Use the equation
to justify the fact that the molar heat capacity of a gas at constant pressure is
greater than the molar heat capacity at constant volume.

(b) Calculate the two principal molar heat capacities of oxygen if their ratio is 1.40
The density of oxygen at s.t.p = 1.43 kgm-3 , one atmosphere = 1.01×10 5 N/m2
and the molecular weight of oxygen = 32

Solution
(a) According to the first law of thermodynamics,
Q = U + W where,
Q = amount of heat energy supplied to the system,
U = increases in internal energy,
W = external work done by the gas,
For one mole of an ideal gas, CV dT = U ,where CV is the molar heat
capacity of a gas at constant volume.

Now suppose that one mole of the same gas is heated at constant pressure so
that its temperature increases by dT . It follows from the definition of Cp that
the heat supplied Q is given by
Q = CP dT
The external work done d W by the gas = PdV ,where dV is the change in
volume and P is the constant pressure.
From the first law of thermodynamics,
Q = U + W
CP dT = CV dT + PdV
In the case of CV the volume is constant. So all the heat energy given is used to
increase the internal energy only. But in the case of CP, the pressure is constant,
but volume changes. So heat energy given to the system is used for two
purposes:
(i) to increase the internal energy and
(ii) for doing external work. Thus in this case an additional amount of heat
equivalent to the work done is also absorbed. So it is clear that, C p> C v .

(b) Applying equation of state,

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 Molecular weight 0.032
PV = RT but V = =
Density at S.T.P 1.43
0.032
1.01×10 5 × = 273 R
1.43
R = 8.28 Jmol 1 K 1
Applying, Cp = CV + R, where Cp and CV are the molar heat capacities of a
gas at constant pressure and volume respectively.
CP
but γ = = 1.4
CV
Cp = 1.4 CV = CV + R
0.4 CV = 8.28
CV = 20.7 Jmol 1 K 1 and Cp = 1.4 × 20.7 = 28.98 Jmol 1 K 1

Example 2. (a) One mole of an ideal gas at 27℃ and 4 atmospheric pressure is compressed
(i) slowly,
(ii) suddenly until its volume is halved. Calculate in each case the final
pressure and temperature of the gas.

(b) A mass of air at 1370C and 780 mmHg pressure occupies a volume of
12 litres.If the air expands first isothermally until its volume increases by
50% and then adiabatically until its volume again increases by 50% each
time reversibly. Calculate the final pressure and temperature.
( Take the value of =1.4 )

Solution
(a) Let T1 = 27 ℃ = 273 +27 = 300 K , P1 = 4 atm
(i) slowly, i.e. isothermal
PV = a constant temperature, so the final temperature = 27 ℃
P 1 V 1 = P2 V 2
4V1
P V
P2 = 1 1 = 1 = 8atm
V2 V1
2
The final pressure, P2 = 8 atmosphere

(ii) Suddenly, i.e adiabatic

T V 1 = a constant
T1 V1γ 1 = T2 V2γ 1

( )
γ1
V1
( )
γ1
V1
T 2 = T1 × = T1 × 1 = T1 × ( 2 )γ 1
V2 V1
2
T2 = 300× ( 2 ) 1.4 1
= 300× ( 2 )0.4 = 395.9 K,
Also, P V = a constant

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 γ γ
i.e. P1 V 1 = P2 V 2

( )
V1 γ
( )
γ
V1
P2 = P1 × = T1 × 1 = T1 × ( 2 )γ = 4× ( 2 )1.4
V2 V1
2
P2 = 10.6 atm
 The final pressure, P2 = 10.6 atmosphere.

(b) Let T1 = 137 ℃ = 273 +137 = 410 K, P1 = 780 mmHg and

V 1 = 12 litres
During isothermal expansion,
50
T1 = T2 = 410 K, V 2 = 12 + × 12 = 18 litres
100
P 1 V 1 = P2 V 2
P V 780 ×12
P2 = 1 1 = = 520 mm Hg
V2 18
During adiabatic expansion,
50
V3 = 18 + × 18 = 27 litres
100
P V = a constant
i.e. P2 V γ2 = P3 V γ3

( )
γ

( )
V2 18 1.4
P 3 = P2 × = 520 × = 294.76 mm Hg
V3 27
In terms of temperature and volume we have,
T V 1 = a constant
γ1 γ1
T2 V 2 = T3 V 3

T3 = T 2 ×
( )
V2 γ1
V3
= 410 × ( )
18 1.4 1
27
= 348.6 K

The final pressure and temperature are 294.76 mmHg and 348.6 K
respectively.

Example 3. (a) (i) Distinguish between an isothermal change and adiabatic change, as applied to
the expansion of a gas.
(ii) A given mass of gas at a pressure of 750 mm of mercury is compressed
isothermally until its volume is reduced by one quarter. It is then made to
1
expand adiabatically to a volume times greater than its original volume.
5
Calculate the final pressure and temperature if its initial temperature 17 ℃ .

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 (b) How much work is required to compress 4 moles of air at 27 ℃ and
1
1 atmosphere to th of the original volume by
16
(i) an isothermal process.
(ii) an adiabatic process.
5
Given CV = R, R = 8.31 J mol 1 K 1 .
2

Solution
(a) (i) A change in pressure and volume which takes place at a constant
temperature is called an isothermal change while a physical change in
pressure, volume and temperature that take place such that no heat is
allowed to enter or leaves the system is called an adiabatic change.
(ii) Let T1 = 17 ℃ = 17 +273 = 290 K and P1 = 750 mmHg
During isothermal compression,
3
T1 = T2 = 290 K, V2 = V = 0.75 V 1
4 1
P1 V 1 = P 2 V 2
750 × V1
P V
P2 = 1 1 = 3 = 1000 mm Hg
V2 V1
4
During adiabatic expansion,
1 6
V3 = V 1 + V1 = V1 = 1.2 V 1
5 5
P V = constant
i.e. P2 V γ2 = P3 V γ3
5 7
Applying, CP = Cv + R = R + R = R
2 2
CP 7
γ = = = 1.4
Cv 5

( ) ( )
γ 1.4
V2 0.75 V 1
P3 = P 2 × = 1000 × = 517.9 mm Hg
V3 1.2 V1
In terms of temperature and volume we have,
T V 1 = a constant
γ1 γ1
T2 V 2 = T3 V 3

( )
T3 = T2 ×
V2 γ1
V3 (
= 290 × )
0.75 V 1 0.4
1.2 V1
= 240.3 K

The final pressure and temperature are 517.9 mmHg and 240.3 K
respectively.
(b) (i) In compressing the gas under isothermal process from volume V1 to V2 the
work done is given by

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 V2

W= ∫ PdV
V1
For an ideal gas, PV = nRT, where n = number of moles
V V
nRT dV
2 2

W=∫ = nRT ∫
V
dV = nRT [ ln V ]V 2

V
V
1 V
V 1
1

W = nRTln
V2
V1 ( )
1
Here, n = 4 moles, T = 27℃ = 27 + 273 = 300 K and V 2 = 16 V1

( )
1
V1
W = 4× 8.31 × 300 ln 16 =  27648.3 J
V1
Negative sign indicates that the work done is by compression.

(ii) Let the gas be compressed from a volume V 1to V 2 adiabatically.

Total work done during the adiabatic compression is given by
V2

W= ∫ PdV
V1
But for an adiabatic process P V = a constant = k
K
P= =kV
V

[ ]
V V
V +1 1
2 2

W=∫ k V dV =k = ( k V 12 k V 11 )
V +1 V
1
1
1
❑ ❑
But P1 V 1 = P2 V 2 = k
1 1
W=
1
( P2 V ❑2 V 12 P1 V ❑1 V 11 ) = 1 ( P2 V 2 P1 V 1 )
1 1
W= ( P1 V 1 P2 V 2 ) = 1 ( P1 V 1 P2 V 2 )
−¿ ¿
1
W=
1
( P1 V 1 P2 V 2 )
If T 1 is the initial temperature and T 2 the final temperature then,
P1 V 1 = nRT 1 and P2 V 2 = nRT 2
1 nR
W=
1
( nR T 1 n R T 2 ) =
1
(T 1T 2)
Using the relation,
γ1 γ1
T1 V 1 = T2 V 2

( )
0.4
V1
T2 = T 1 ×
( ) V1 γ1
V2
= 300 × 1
16
V1
= 909.4 K

4 ×8.31
W= ( 300 909.4 ) =  50641 J.
1.4 1

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Example 4. (a) (i) State the first law of thermodynamics.
(ii) Deduce the relationship CP Cv = R, for the difference between the
principal molar heat capacities (CP and Cv ) for an ideal gas.

5
(b) The specific heat of an ideal gas at constant pressure, CP = R . The gas is
2
contained in a closed vessel of volume 0.008 m 3 at a temperature of 300 K and
a pressure of 1.5× 106 Nm 2 . It is given 2.58× 104 J of energy. Compute the
final temperature and pressure of the gas. Universal gas constant
R = 8.31 J mol 1 K 1

Solution
(a) (i) The first law of thermodynamics states that the heat energy supplied to a
system is equal to the increase in internal energy of the system plus the
external work done by the gas.
i.e. d Q = d U + d W, where
d Q = amount of heat energy supplied to the system
d U = increases in internal energy
d W = external work done by the gas
(ii) According to the first law of thermodynamics we have,
d Q = d U + d W, but CV dT = d U, where d U is the increase in internal
energy of the gas.
Now suppose that one mole of the same gas is heated at constant pressure so
that its temperature increases by dT . It follows from the definition of Cp that
the heat supplied d Q is given by
d Q = CP dT
The external work done d W by the gas is given by
d W = PdV , where dV is the change in volume and P is the constant
pressure.
From the first law of thermodynamics,
dQ = dU + dW
CP dT = CV dT + PdV ------------------------------------------(i)
From an ideal gas equation of one mole,
PV = RT, so that
P( V +dV ) = R ( T + dT )
PV + PdV = RT + RdT
PdV = RdT
Substituting for PdV in equation (i) gives
CP dT = CV dT + RdT

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 CP = C V + R
CP  CV = R

(b) Using the relation, CP = CV + R

5
R = CV + R
2
5 3
CV = R  R = R
2 2
. An ideal gas equation gives,
PV = nRT
PV 1.5 × 106 × 0.008 40
n= = =
RT 300R R
Since the gas is contained in a closed vessel then, change in temperature and
pressure take place under constant volume. Only internal energy of the gas is
used to rise its temperature.
Internal energy of the gas = nCV ∆ T, where ∆ T is the rise in temperature of
the gas.
40 3
2.58× 104 = × R ∆ T = 60 ∆ T
R 2
∆ T = 430 K but ∆ T = T2  T1 , thus
T2  T1 = 430
T2 = T1 + 430 = 300 + 430 = 730 K
If P2 is the final pressure of the gas then
P1 P2
=
T1 T2

( ) T
P2 = P1 × 2 = 1.5× 106 ×
T1 ( ) 730
300
= 3.65× 106 Nm 2 .

 The final temperature and pressure are 730 K and 3.65× 106 Nm 2
respectively.

Example 5. A cylinder fitted with a frictionless piston contains 1.0 g of oxygen at a pressure of
760 mmHg and temperature of 370C .The following operations are performed in
stages.
1.The oxygen is heated at a constant pressure to 1170C and then
2. It is compressed isothermally to its original volume and finally
3. It is cooled at a constant volume to its original temperature.
(a) illustrates these changes in a sketch PV indicator diagram.
(b) what is the input of heat to the cylinder in stage (1) above ?
(c) how much work does the oxygen do in pushing back the piston during stage
(1) ?

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 (d) how much work is done on oxygen in stage (2) ?
(e) how much heat must be extracted from the oxygen in stage (3) ?
For oxygen: density at s.t.p = 1.43 kgm-3, molecular weight = 32
The molar heat capacity at constant volume, Cv = 2190 Jkg1k1, molar gas
constant R = 8.31 Jmol1k1.

Solution
Applying the equation of state we have
m
PV = nRT = RT, where m is the mass of oxygen gas and M its
M
molecular weight.
Here, P = 760 mmHg = 1.013× 105 Nm 2 , m = 1.0 g,
T = 27℃ = 37 +273 = 310 K, and M = 32 gmol 1
m
P1 V 1 = R T1
M
1
1.013× 105 V1 = × 8.31 × 310
32
V1 = 7.947× 10 4 m 3
During stage 1.
P1 = P2 = 1.013× 105 Nm 2
T2 = 117℃ = 117 +273 = 390 K
Applying
V1 V2
=
T1 T2

( )
V2 = V 1 × 2
T
T1
= 7.947× 10 4 × ( )
390
310
= 9.998× 10 4 m 3

During stage 2
T3 = T2 = 390 K since the process is under isothermal condition
and V 3 = V 1 = 7.947× 10 4 m 3
P2 V 2 = P3 V 3

( )V
P3 = P2 × 2 = 1.013× 105 ×
V3 ( 7.947 × 10)
9.998 × 10 4
4 = 1.27× 105 Nm 2

During stage 3.
P 4 = P1 = 1.013× 105 Nm 2 , T 4 = T1 = 310 K and
V 4 = V1 = 7.947× 10 4 m 3

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 (a) PV indicator diagram

(b) Applying the first law of thermodynamics, in put heat is given by

dQ = dU + dW
d Q = mC v ( T 2−T 1 ) + P ( V 2−V 1)
d Q = 0.001× 2190( 390 310 ) + 1.013× 105 ( 9.998 × 10 4 7.947× 10 4 )
d Q = 196 J
(c) Work done by the oxygen gas in pushing back the piston during stage (1)
d W = P ( V 2−V 1) = 1.013× 105 ( 9.998 × 10 4 7.947× 10 4 ) = 20.8 J
(d) Work done during isothermal compression is given by
V3

W= ∫ PdV
V2
For an ideal gas, PV = nRT, where n = number of moles
V V
nRT dV
3 3

W=∫ dV = nRT ∫
V
= nRT [ ln V ]V
3

V2
V V2
V 2

W=
m
M
RTln ( )
V3
V2
Here, m = 1.0 g , M = 32 gmol 1 , T = 390 K and V 3 = 7.947× 10 4 m 3 and
V 2 = 9.998× 10 4 m 3

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 ( )
4
7.947 × 10
W = × 8.31 × 390 ln 4 =  23.2 J
9.998 × 10
(e) heat extracted from the oxygen in stage (3) is given by
d Q = mCV ( T3 T 4 ) , since dV = 0
d Q = 0.001× 2190( 310 390 ) =  175.2 J = | 175.2 J | = 175.2 J

Example 6. An ideal gas having initial pressure P0,volume V 0 and temperature T 0 is allowed to
expand suddenly until its volume becomes 5.66 times its original volume while its
temperature falls to one half of its initial value
(a) how many degree of freedom does the gas molecule has ?
(b) obtain the work done by the gas during the expansion as a function of the initial
pressure and volume.

Solution
(a) Expanding the suddenly, i.e adiabatic expansion we have
T V 1 = a constant
γ1 γ1
T1 V 1 = T 2 V 2
T1
T2 ( )
=
V2 γ1
V1
T1
T1 =
2
( )
5.66 V 1 γ 1
V1
γ1
2 = ( 5.66 )
Applying natural logarithm on both sides we have,
log e 2 = log e (5.66 )γ 1
log e 2 = (  1) log e 5.66
0.693 = 1.7334(  1)
γ  1 = 0.4
γ = 1.4
2
But  = 1 + , where n is the degree of freedom of a particular gas.
n
2
= γ  1 = 1.4  1 = 0.4
n
2
n = =5
0.4
(b) Total work done during the adiabatic expansion is given by

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 V2

W = ∫ PdV ,but for an adiabatic process P V = a constant = k

V1
K
i.e P = =kV
V

[ ]
V2 +1 V 2
V 1
W = ∫ k V dV = k = ( kV12 kV 11 )
V 1
+1 1V
1
P V
But 1 1 = 2 2 = k P V
1 1
W=
1
( P2 V2 V 12 P1 V 1 V 11 ) =
1
( P 2 V 2 P1 V 1 )
1 1
W= ( P 1 V 1 P2 V 2 ) = 1 ( P 1 V 1 P 2 V 2 )
−¿ ¿
1
W=
1
( P 1 V 1 P2 V 2 )
Applying, P V = a constant
i.e. P1 V γ1 = P2 V γ2

( ) ( )
γ 1.4
V1 V0
P2 = P 1 × = P0 × = 0.088 P 0
V2 5.66 V 0
1
W=
1.4 1
( P 0 V0 0.088 P 0 × 5.66 V 0 ) = 1.25 P 0 V0 units.

Example 7. (a) 1.0 g of water at 100℃ is converted into steam at the same temperature.If the
volume of steam is 1670 cm 3 , find the change in internal energy of the system.
Latent heat of steam = 2256 Jg 1 . Density of water = 103 kg m 3 .

(b) A litre of hydrogen at 57℃ and 105 N m 2 pressure expands isothermally

until its volume is doubled and then adiabatically until its volume is redoubled.
Calculate the final pressure and temperature of the gas.

Solution
(a) According to the first law of thermodynamics
dQ = dU + dW
mL = dU + P ( V S V W )
dU = mL  P ( VS V W )
Here, mass of water, m = 1.0 g = 0.001 kg, Volume of steam, V = 1670 cm 3
atmospheric pressure, P = 1.013× 105 Nm 2 , Latent heat of steam , L = 2256 Jg 1
mass 10 3
V
Volume of water, W = = 3 = 10 6 m 3
density 10
dU = 0.001× 2256× 10  1.013× 105 ( 1670 × 10 6 10 6 ) = 2086.9 J
3

(b) During isothermal expansion,

P 1 V 1 = P2 V 2

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 5
P1V 1 1.013× 10 × V1
P2 = = = 5.1× 104 Nm 2
V2 2 V1
and T1 = T2 = 57 ℃ = 330 K
During adiabatic expansion
For pressure,
Apply, P2 V γ2 = P3 V γ3

( )
V2 γ
( )
1.4
V2
P 3 = P2 × = 5.1× 104 × = 1.93× 104 Nm 2
V3 2 V2
For temperature,
Apply, T2 V2γ 1 = T3 V 3γ 1

( ) ( )
γ1 0.4
V2 V2
T3 = T 2 × = 330 × = 250 K
V3 2 V2

Example 8. Five moles of an ideal gas at a pressure 105 Nm 2 and temperature 27 ℃ is

isothermally expanded to twice its initial volume. It is then compressed at constant
pressure to its original volume. Finally the gas is compressed at constant volume to
its original pressure .
(a) Sketch the P-V diagram for the complete process
(b) Calculate the net work done by the gas, and net heat supplied to the gas during
the complete process.

Solution.
(a) PV  indicator diagram

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 (b) Work done during the isothermal process AB is given by

W = nRTln ( )
V2
V1
Here, n = 5 moles, T = 27 ℃ = 300 K , P1 =105 Nm 2 and V2 = 2 V 1

W = 5× 8.31 × 300 ( )
2V 1
V1
= 8640 J

Applying ,P1 V 1 = nR T1
10 × V 1 = 5 × 8.31× 300
5

V 1 = 0.12465m 3
Applying, P1 V1 = P2 V2
5
P V 10 × V1
P2 = 1 1 = = 0.5 × 105 Nm 2
V2 2 V1

Work done during isobaric process BC is given by

W= P2 ( V3 V2 ) = 0.5 × 105 ( 0.12465 0.2493 ) =  6232.5 J
Work done during the isochoric process CA = 0 because dV = 0
Net work done = W AB + W BC + W CA = 8640  6232.5 + 0 = 2407.5 J
The internal energy dU = 0 because the final state is the same as initial state.
By first law of thermodynamics,
dQ = dU + dW = 0 + 2407.5 = 2407.5 J
 The net heat supplied to the gas , dQ = 2407.5 J

Example 9. The diagram in figure 3.11 represents an energy cycle where by a mole of an ideal
gas is firstly cooled at constant pressure (B → C ) then heated at constant volume
(C → A) and then returned to its original state (A→B) .

Mwalonde,B. 0 714-053910/0767-053910Page 108

 (a) Calculate the temperature of the gas at A, at B, and at C
(b) Calculate the heat given out by the gas in the process (B → C )
(c) Calculate the heat absorbed in the process (C → A)
(d) Calculate the net amount of work done in the cycle.
(e) Calculate the net amount of heat transferred in the cycle.
5
(Molar gas constant, R = 8.3 Jmol1k1 and CV = R )
2

Solution
(a) Given, P1 = 105 Nm 2 , V1 = 0.025 m 3 and n = 1 mole
Applying, P1 V 1 = n R T1
105 × 0.025 = 1 × 8.3 T1
T1 = 301.2 K
During stage 1 (B → C)
P1 = P2 = 105 Nm 2 since the process is under isobaric process,
V 2 = 0.0125 m 3 and T1 = 301.2 K,
Applying
V1 V2
=
T1 T2

( )
T2 = T 1 × 2
V
V1
= 301.2 × (
0.0125
0.025 )= 150.6 K

During stage 2 (C → A)
V3 = V2 = = 0.0125 m 3 since the process is under isochoric.
P2 P3
=
T2 T3

( )
P
( )
5
2 ×10
T3 = T 2 × 3 = 150.6 × = 301.2 K
P2 10
5

 The temperatures of the gas at A, at B, and at C are 301.2 K, 301.2 K and

150.6 K respectively.
(b) The heat given out by the gas in the process (B → C ) is given by
5 5
dQ = n C v ( T 2−T 1 ) + P ( V 2−V 1) where Cv = R = × 8.31 = 20.775
2 2
d Q = 1× 20.775( 150.6 301.2 ) + 10 ( 0.0125 0.025 ) =  4378.7 J
5

 Heat given out by the gas in the process (B → C ) = 4378.7 J

(c) The heat absorbed in the process (C → A) is

dQ = n C v ( T 3−T 2 ) + P ( V 2−V 1) but V 3 = V 2 = = 0.0125 m 3 since the
process is under isochoric

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 dQ = n C v ( T 3−T 2 ) = 1× 20.775( 301.2 150.6 ) = 3128.7 J

(d)

The net amount of work done in the cycle = Area under the curve
1 1
W net = × base× height = × ∆V × ∆P
2 2
1
W net = × ( 0.025 0.0125 ) × ( 2 ×10 5 105 ) = 625 J
2
(e).The internal energy dU = 0 because the final state is the same as initial state.
By first law of thermodynamics,
dQ = dU + dW = 0 + 625 = 625 J
 The net amount of heat transferred in the cycle, dQ = 625 J

10. (a) (i) What is the difference between an isothermal process and an adiabatic process
(ii) Explain the fact that the temperature of the ocean at great depth is very nearly constant
the year round at a temperature of about 4℃ .

(b) How much work is required to compress 5 moles of air at 20℃ and 1 atmosphere to
1
th of the original volume by
10
(i) an isothermal process.
(ii) an adiabatic process.

(c) What are the final pressure for cases (b) (i) and (ii) above.

(d) In a diesel engine, the cylinder compresses air from approximately standard temperature
pressure to about one  sixteenth the original volume and a pressure of about
50 atmosphere. What is the final temperature of the compression?
Mwalonde,B. 0 714-053910/0767-053910Page 110
 5
(Molar gas constant, R = 8.31 Jmol1k1 and CV = R)
2

Solution
(a) (i) A thermodynamic process that takes place at a constant temperature is called
isothermal process while an expansion or contraction in which no heat enters or
leaves the gas is called an adiabatic expansion or contraction.
(ii) The density of ocean water is maximum at a temperature of above 4℃ .Ocean water
and ice of low density floats over ocean’s surface. Since ice and water of low
density have low thermal conductivities there is no transmission of heat through the
water at the bottom of the ocean and the temperature of the ocean at great depth is
very nearly constant the year.

(b) (i) Work done during isothermal compression is given by

V3

W= ∫ PdV
V2
For an ideal gas, PV = nRT, where n = number of moles
V V
nRT dV
3 3

W=∫ dV = nRT ∫
V
= nRT [ ln V ]V 3

V
V
2 V
V 2
2

W = nRTln
V3
V2 ( )
1
Here, n = 5 moles, T = 20 +273 = 293K and V 2 = V
10 1

( )
1
V1
W = 5 × 8.31 × 293 ln 10 =  28032 J
V1
Negative sign indicates that the work done is by compression.

(ii) The work done during the adiabatic expansion is given by

T1 T1

W=  ∫ nC v dT =  n C v ∫ dT
T2 T2
T
=  n C v [ T ]T =  n C v ( T1 T2 )
1

W = n C v ( T 2 T1 )
Applying, T V 1 = a constant
T1 V1γ 1 = T2 V2γ 1

( )
0.4
V1
T2 = T 1 ×
( )
V1 γ1
V2
= 293 × 1
10
V1
= 736 K

5
W = 5 × × 8.31 ( 736 293 ) = 46016.6 J
2

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 (c) For case b (i), i.e during isothermal process we have,
P 1 V 1 = P2 V 2
1atm × V1
P V
P2 = 1 1 = 1 = 10 atmosphere
V2 V1
10
For case b(ii), i.e during adiabatic process ,
γ γ
Apply, P1 V 1 = P2 V 2

( )
1.4
V1
( )
γ
V1
P2 = P1 × = 1atm × 1 = 25.1 atmosphere
V2 V1
10
PV
(d) Applying, = constant
T
P1V 1 P V
= 2 2
T1 T2
1
P2V 2 50× V1
T2 = × T1 = 16 × 273 = 853 K.
P1V 1
P1 V 1
The temperature of compression = 853 K

PROBLEMS FOR PRACTICE

1. (a) (i) Explain why, when quoting the specific heat capacity of a gas, it is necessary to
specify the conditions under which the change of temperature occurs. What conditions
are normally specified ?
(ii) Explain clearly and concisely why is the energy needed to raise the temperature of a
given mass of gas by a certain amount greater if the pressure is kept constant than if
the volume is kept constant ?

(b) State the first law of thermodynamics. What is the evidence for its validity?
When applied to a fixed mass of gas this law can be written in the form
δU = δQ  Pδ V.
Explain the meaning of each of the three terms.

2 .(a) (i) Define isothermal and adiabatic changes and give the equation relating the pressure
and volume for an ideal gas for each type of change.
(ii) Explain why the temperature falls during an adiabatic expansion.

(b) Air occupying a volume of 10 litres at 0℃ and atmospheric pressure is compressed

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 isothermally to a volume of 2.0 litres and is then allowed to expand adiabatically to the
original volume. Show the process on a PV diagram and calculate the final pressure and
temperature of the air. Assume γ = 1.4 for air ( and all changes are reversible ).
[ 0.53 atmosphere, 143 K ]
3. (a) In a reversible adiabatic change in a gas, the pressure P and the volume V obeys the
relation P Vγ = constant. Explain the terms adiabatic and reversible and discuss how the
value of index γ depends on the atomicity of the gas.

(b) Air initially at atmospheric pressure is compressed adiabatically and reversibly to a

pressure of 4.0 atmospheres and is then allowed to expand isothermally and reversibly to
its original volume.
(i) Find the final pressure. [ 1.49 atmosphere ]
(ii) Sketch on a P-V diagram the curves representing the changes.
(iii) State, with reasons, which is greater: the work done on the air during compression
or that done by the air in expanding. ( for air = 1.4 ).

4. (a) Distinguish between isothermal and adiabatic changes. Show that for an ideal gas the
curves relating pressure and volume for an adiabatic change have a greater slope than
those for an isothermal change at the same pressure.

(b) An ideal gas at an initial temperature 17℃ and pressure 1.0 atmosphere is compressed
slowly to one quarter of its original volume.
(i) What will be its final pressure and temperature?. [ 4 atmosphere, 17 ℃ ]
(ii) What would have been the pressure and temperature if the compression
had been suddenly? [ 6.96 atmosphere, 504.9 K ]
( Ratio of principal specific heat capacities of the gas = 1.40 )

5. (a) Why is the heat capacity at constant volume considered to be more important than
that at constant pressure?

(b) A mass of an ideal gas occupying initially a volume 300 cm3 at a pressure of 2 atm
and a temperature of 160C is expanded rapidly and reversibly to twice this volume,
and then compressed so slowly and reversibly to a volume 160 cm3 .Calculate the
final temperature and pressure of the gas, assuming that the ratio of the specific heat
capacities of air to be 1.40. [ 219 K, 2.85 atmosphere ]

6. (a) Sketch, using the same axes, the pressure  volume curves for both isothermal and
adiabatic changes for the expansion of a gas from a volume V 1 and pressure P1 to a
volume V2 and pressure P2 and account for the differences between the two curves.

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 (b) A mass of air initially at a pressure of 760 mm of mercury and a temperature of 57℃ is
expanded adiabatically and reversibly until its volume is doubled, and then compressed
isothermally and reversibly by one quarter of its original volume. Find the final temperature
and pressure, assuming the ratio of the specific heat capacities of air to be 1.40.
[ 329 mmHg, 250.1 K ]
7. An ideal gas having initial pressure P0,volume V 0 and temperature T 0 is allowed to expand
suddenly until its volume becomes 2.8 times its original volume while its temperature falls
to one half of its initial value.
(a) how many degree of freedom does the gas molecule has ? [3 ]
(b) obtain the work done by the gas during the expansion as a function of the initial
pressure and volume. [ 0.74 P0 V 0 units ]

8. 0.4 moles of an ideal gas which is kept at constant temperature of 400 K is compressed
isothermally from its initial volume 18 litres to the final volume of 12 litres.
(a) Calculate the total work done in the whole process. [ 539.1 J ]

(b) Comment on the sign of numerical answer you have obtained.

9. The cylinder in figure 3.12 (a), holds a volume V 1 =1000 cm3 of air at an initial pressure
P1 = 1.0× 105 Pa and temperature T1 = 300 K. Assume that air behaves like an ideal gas.

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 Figure 3.12 (b), shows a sequence of changes imposed on the air in the cylinder.
(a) AB – the air is heated to 350 K at constant pressure
(b) BC  the air is compressed isothermally to original volume V 1
(c) CA the air cools at constant volume to its original state
(i) Calculate the heat absorbed by the gas in the process A B [ 174.65 J ]
(ii) Calculate the work done on the air during the process B C [ 60.65 J ]
(iii) Calculate the net amount of heat transferred during the full sequence of changes.
5
R [ 10.65 J ]
( R = 8.31Jmol k , CV = 2 ).
1 1

0
10. (a) 0.1 mole of an ideal gas at a pressure of 105 Pa and temperature 182 is firstly
cooled at constant pressure until its volume is halved, then heated at constant
volume until its pressure become 266 kPa and finally returned to its original state.
(i) Show the three processes above in a P-V diagram, giving the numerical values of P,
T and V at the end of each process.
(ii) Calculate the amount of heat given out by the gas during the first stage,
( 661.63 J )
(iii) Calculate the amount of heat absorbed in the second stage, (Ans: 784.67 J )
(iv) Calculate the net work done by the gas in the cycle. (Ans: 156.87 J )
5
R
(Molar heat capacity at constant volume, CV = 2 )

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