Question

A football is left on the field outside during the winter months, the next morning the football was partially deflated. Using what you know about gas laws, explain what happened to the football.
A
Pressure decreases due to less molecular motion of the gas inside the football.

B
Volume decreases due to less molecular motion of the gas inside the football.

C
Volume increases due to more molecular motion of the gas inside the football.

D
Pressure increases due to more molecular motion of the gas inside the football.

Answer 1

Answer:

B  

Volume decreases due to less molecular motion of the gas inside the football.

Explanation:

Assuming that the atmospheric pressure (and therefore, the pressure of the air inside the football) remains constant, this means that we can apply Charle's law, which states that:

"For a fixed amount of gas kept at constant pressure, the volume of the gas is proportional to its absolute temperature"

Mathematically:

$\frac{V}{T}=const.$

where

V is the volume of the gas

T is its absolute temperature

In the winter month, the air becomes colder, which means that the temperature of the air (and of the gas inside the football) decreases. As the average kinetic energy of the molecules of a gas is proportional to its absolute temperature, this also means that there will be less molecular motion in the gas, and therefore (as stated by Charle's law) the volume of the gas also decreases.