Thermal Physics 1 [50 marks]

1. [Maximum mark: 1]
Two surfaces X and Y emit radiation of the same surface intensity. X
emits a radiation of peak wavelength twice that of Y.

emissivity of X
What is emissivity of Y
?

A. 16
1

1
B. 2

C. 2

D. 16 [1]

2. [Maximum mark: 1]
Light of intensity 500 W m−2 is incident on concrete and on snow. 300
W m−2 is reflected from the
concrete and 400 W m−2 is reflected from the snow.

What is ?
albedo of concrete

albedo of snow

A. 1

3
B. 4

4
C. 3

D. 2 [1]

3. [Maximum mark: 1]
 A vessel contains a mass X of helium gas and a mass 2X of oxygen gas.

Molar mass of helium = 4 g

Molar mass of oxygen = 32 g

What is the ?
number of helium atoms

number of oxygen molecules

1
A. 8

1
B. 4

C. 4

D. 8 [1]

4. [Maximum mark: 1]
A balloon of volume V contains 10 mg of an ideal gas at a pressure P. An
additional mass of the gas is added without changing the temperature
of the balloon. This change causes the volume to increase to 2V and the
pressure to increase to 3P.

What is the mass of gas added to the balloon?

A. 5 mg

B. 15 mg

C. 50 mg

D. 60 mg [1]

5. [Maximum mark: 1]
 A planet has an albedo of 0.30. A simplified energy balance for the
planet is shown.

What is the intensity radiated by the surface of the planet?

A. 70 W m−2

B. 90 W m−2

C. 100 W m−2

D. 130 W m−2 [1]

6. [Maximum mark: 1]
A block of glass of mass 5 kg and temperature 30°C is brought into
contact with a block of asphalt of mass 20 kg and temperature 75°C.
The specific heat capacity of asphalt is twice that of glass. No energy is
transferred to the surroundings. What is the final temperature of both
blocks?

A. 35°C

B. 45°C

C. 60°C
 D. 70°C [1]

7. [Maximum mark: 1]
A solid mass gains energy at a constant rate until it reaches its liquid
phase. The specific heat capacity in the solid phase is greater than in
the liquid phase.

Which graph shows how the temperature of the mass varies with time?

[1]

8. [Maximum mark: 1]
Three statements about Boltzmann’s constant kB are:

I. kB has a unit of J K−1

gas constant
II. kB = Avogadro's constant

the average kinetic energy of particles

III. kB = temperature of the gas

Which statements are correct?

 A. I and II only

B. I and III only

C. II and III only

D. I, II and III [1]

9. [Maximum mark: 1]
A driver uses the brakes on a car to descend a hill at constant speed.
What is correct about the internal energy of the brake discs?

A. The internal energy increases.

B. The internal energy decreases.

C. There is no change in the internal energy.

D. The internal energy is zero. [1]

10. [Maximum mark: 1]

Two blocks, X and Y, are placed in contact with each other. Data for the
blocks are provided.

X has a mass m. What is the mass of Y?

A. m

4
 B. m

C. 4m

D. 6m
[1]

11. [Maximum mark: 1]

An ideal gas is maintained at a temperature of 100 K. The variation of
the pressure P and 1

volume
of the gas is shown.

What is the quantity of the gas?

5

A. 2×10

R
mol

B. 200

R
mol

C. 80

R
mol

D. 4

5R
mol [1]
12. [Maximum mark: 1]
A quantity of an ideal gas is at a temperature T in a cylinder with a
movable piston that traps a length L of the gas. The piston is moved so
that the length of the trapped gas is reduced to and the pressure of
5L

the gas doubles.

What is the temperature of the gas at the end of the change?

A. 5

12
T

B. 3

5
T

5
C. 3
T

12
D. 5
T [1]

13. [Maximum mark: 1]

What is true for an ideal gas?

A. nRT = NkB T

B. nRT = kB T

C. RT = NkB T

D. RT = kB T
 [1]

14. [Maximum mark: 1]

Which assumption is part of the molecular kinetic model of ideal
gases?

A. The work done on a system equals the change in kinetic energy of

the system.

B. The volume of a gas results from adding the volume of the

individual molecules.

C. A gas is made up of tiny identical particles in constant random

motion.

D. All particles in a gas have kinetic and potential energy. [1]

15. [Maximum mark: 1]

System X is at a temperature of 40 °C. Thermal energy is provided to
system X until it reaches a temperature of 50 °C. System Y is at a
temperature of 283 K. Thermal energy is provided to system Y until it
reaches a temperature of 293 K.

What is the difference in the thermal energy provided to both systems?

A. Zero

B. Larger for X

C. Larger for Y

D. Cannot be determined with the data given [1]

16. [Maximum mark: 1]
A liquid is vaporized to a gas at a constant temperature.

Three quantities of the substance are the

I. total intermolecular potential energy

II. root mean square speed of the molecules
III. average distance between the molecules.

Which quantities are greater for the substance in the gas phase
compared to the liquid phase?

A. I and II only

B. I and III only

C. II and III only

D. I, II and III [1]

17. [Maximum mark: 1]

A mass m of a liquid of specific heat capacity c flows every second
through a heater of power P . What is the difference in temperature
between the liquid entering and leaving the heater?

A. mc

B. 273 +
mc

C.
P

mc

D. 273 +
mc
P
[1]
18. [Maximum mark: 1]
A fixed mass of an ideal gas has a volume of V , a pressure of p and a
temperature of 30 °C. The gas is compressed to the volume of 6 and
V

its pressure increases to 12p. What is the new temperature of the gas?

A. 15 °C

B. 60 °C

C. 333 °C

D. 606 °C [1]

19. [Maximum mark: 1]

Which aspect of thermal physics is best explained by the molecular
kinetic model?

A. The equation of state of ideal gases

B. The difference between Celsius and Kelvin temperature

C. The value of the Avogadro constant

D. The existence of gaseous isotopes [1]

20. [Maximum mark: 1]

When 40 kJ of energy is transferred to a quantity of a liquid substance,
its temperature increases by 20 K. When 600 kJ of energy is transferred
to the same quantity of the liquid at its boiling temperature, it
vaporizes completely at constant temperature. What is

specif ic latent heat of vaporization

specif ic heat capacity of the liquid

for this substance?

 A. 15 K−1

B. 15 K

C. 300 K−1

D. 300 K
[1]

21. [Maximum mark: 1]

A quantity of 2.00 mol of an ideal gas is maintained at a temperature of
127 ºC in a container of volume 0.083 m3. What is the pressure of the
gas?

A. 8 kPa

B. 25 kPa

C. 40 kPa

D. 80 kPa [1]

22. [Maximum mark: 1]

What is the relation between the value of the unified atomic mass unit
in grams and the value of Avogadro’s constant in mol−1?

A. Their ratio is 1.

B. Their product is 1.

C. Their sum is 1.

D. Their difference is 0. [1]

23. [Maximum mark: 1]
A sample of oxygen gas with a volume of 3. 0 m3 is at 100 °C. The
gas is heated so that it expands at a constant pressure to a final volume
of 6. 0 m3. What is the final temperature of the gas?

A. 750 °C

B. 470 °C

C. 370 °C

D. 200 °C [1]

24. [Maximum mark: 1]

Two identical containers X and Y each contain an ideal gas. X has N
molecules of gas at an absolute temperature of T and Y has 3N
molecules of gas at an absolute temperature of T

2
What is the ratio of
PY
the pressures PX
?

A. 1

2
B. 3

3
C. 2

D. 6 [1]

25. [Maximum mark: 1]

 A piece of metal at a temperature of 100 °C is dropped into an equal
mass of water at a temperature of 15 °C in a container of negligible
mass. The specific heat capacity of water is four times that of the metal.
What is the final temperature of the mixture?

A. 83 °C

B. 57 °C

C. 45 °C

D. 32 °C [1]

26. [Maximum mark: 1]

An ideal gas of constant mass is heated in a container of constant
volume.

What is the reason for the increase in pressure of the gas?

A. The average number of molecules per unit volume increases.

B. The average force per impact at the container wall increases.

C. Molecules collide with each other more frequently.

D. Molecules occupy a greater fractional volume of the container. [1]

27. [Maximum mark: 1]

A substance in the gas state has a density about 1000 times less than
when it is in the liquid state. The diameter of a molecule is d. What is
the best estimate of the average distance between molecules in the
gas state?

A. d
 B. 10d

C. 100d
[1]
D. 1000d

28. [Maximum mark: 1]

A bicycle of mass M comes to rest from speed v using the back brake.
The brake has a specific heat capacity of c and a mass m. Half of the
kinetic energy is absorbed by the brake.

What is the change in temperature of the brake?

2

A.
Mv

4mc

B.
Mv

2mc

C.
mv

4M c

D.
mv

2M c
[1]

29. [Maximum mark: 1]

A mass m of water is at a temperature of 290 K. The specific heat
capacity of water is c. Ice, at its melting point, is added to the water to
reduce the water temperature to the freezing point. The specific latent
heat of fusion for ice is L. What is the minimum mass of ice that is
required?

17mc
A. L

B. 290mc

17mL
C. c
 D. 290mL
[1]
c

30. [Maximum mark: 1]

An ideal gas is in a closed container. Which changes to its volume and
temperature when taken together must cause a decrease in the gas
pressure?

[1]

31. [Maximum mark: 10]

The pV diagram shows a heat engine cycle consisting of adiabatic, isothermal
and isovolumetric parts. The working substance of the engine is an ideal gas.

The following data are available:

pA = 5.00 × 105 Pa
 VA = 2.00 × 10−3 m3

TA = 602 K

pB = 3.00 × 104 Pa

pC = 4.60 × 103 Pa
(a) Suggest why AC is the adiabatic part of the cycle. [2]

(b) Show that the volume at C is 3.33 × 10−2 m3. [2]

(c) Suggest, for the change A ⇒ B, whether the entropy of the gas
is increasing, decreasing or constant. [2]

(d) Calculate the thermal energy (heat) taken out of the gas from B
to C. [2]

(e) The highest and lowest temperatures of the gas during the
cycle are 602 K and 92 K.

The efficiency of this engine is about 0.6. Outline how these

data are consistent with the second law of thermodynamics. [2]

32. [Maximum mark: 10]

A frictionless piston traps a fixed mass of an ideal gas. The gas undergoes three
thermodynamic processes in a cycle.
The initial conditions of the gas at A are:

volume = 0.330 m3
pressure = 129 kPa
temperature = 27.0 °C

Process AB is an isothermal change, as shown on the pressure volume (pV)

diagram, in which the gas expands to three times its initial volume.
(a) Calculate the pressure of the gas at B. [2]

The gas now undergoes adiabatic compression BC until it returns to the initial
volume. To complete the cycle, the gas returns to A via the isovolumetric process
CA.

(b) Sketch, on the pV diagram, the remaining two processes BC and

CA that the gas undergoes. [2]

(c) Show that the temperature of the gas at C is approximately 350

°C. [2]

(d) Explain why the change of entropy for the gas during the
process BC is equal to zero. [1]

(e) Explain why the work done by the gas during the isothermal
expansion AB is less than the work done on the gas during the
adiabatic compression BC. [1]
(f ) The quantity of trapped gas is 53.2 mol. Calculate the thermal
energy removed from the gas during process CA. [2]

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