A sample contains 12.0 moles of a monoatomic ideal gas at 40°C and an initial pressure of 8.0 atm. The external pressure is lowered to 2 atm in a reversible manner. For this process, identify the work closest to the answer obtained.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The work done in a reversible isothermal expansion is given by the equation:
W = -nRT ln(Pf/Pi)
where n is the number of moles, R is the gas constant, T is the temperature, Pf is the final pressure, and Pi is the initial pressure.

Substituting the given values, we get:
W = - (12.0 mol) (8.314 J/mol K) (313 K) ln(2 atm/8 atm)
W = -19,938 J

Therefore, the closest answer is C, -19,938 J.

A Sample Contains 12