Question

A gas occupies 175 mL at a pressure of 825 torr. What is the volume when the pressure is decreased to 415 torr?

Answer 1

The new volume will be `"348 mL"`.

Explanation:

You will need to use Boyle's law to answer this question. Boyle's law states that when temperature is constant, the volume of a gas is inversely proportional to the pressure. This means that if the volume increases, the pressure decreases and vice versa. The equation for Boyle's law is:

`P_1V_1 = P_2V_2`.

Given:

`P_1 = "825 torr"`

`V_1 = "175 mL"`

`P_2 = "415 torr"`

Unknown:

`V_2`

Solution:

Isolate `V_2` by dividing both sides of the equation by `P_2`, then solve for `V_2`.

`V_2 = (P_1V_1)/P_2 =(825color(red)cancel(color(black)("torr"))xx175"mL")/(415color(red)cancel(color(black)("torr")))="348 mL"`