Question

If a gas is compressed from 4 L to 1 L and the temperature remains constant, what happens to the pressure?

Answer 1

If T=const
P1V1=P2V2
P1*4L=P2*1L
P2=4P1
pressure increases by factor of 4

Answer 2

Answer:

The pressure increases by a factor of 4. In other words, the pressure quadruples.

Explanation:

An ideal gas is a theoretical gas that is considered to be composed of point particles that move randomly and do not interact with each other. Gases in general are ideal when they are at high temperatures and low pressures.

Gas laws are a set of chemical and physical laws that allow determining the behavior of gases in a closed system. The parameters evaluated in these laws are pressure, volume, temperature and moles.

As the volume increases, the particles (atoms or molecules) of the gas take longer to reach the walls of the container and therefore collide less times per unit of time against them. This means that the pressure will be lower because it represents the frequency of gas shocks against the walls. In this way the pressure and volume are related, determining Boyle's law that says:

"The volume occupied by a certain gas mass at a constant temperature is inversely proportional to the pressure"

Boyle's law is expressed mathematically as:

Pressure * Volume = constant

or P * V = k

In this law then two variables are related: pressure and volume, so it is assumed that the temperature of the gas and the number of molecules of the gas are constant.

It is now possible to assume that you have a certain volume of V1 gas that is at a pressure P1 at the beginning of the experiment. If you vary the volume of gas to a new V2 value, then the pressure will change to P2, and the following will be true:

P1 * V1 = P2 * V2

In this case V1 = 4 L and V2 = 1 L, so the previous expression is expressed as:

P1 * 4 = P2 * 1

So, accommodating this last expression:

P2 = 4 * P1

Note that the pressure increases by a factor of 4. In other words, the pressure quadruples.