Engineering Thermodynamics
Wayne Hacker
Copyright Wayne Hacker 2009. All rights reserved.
Homework set 1
Contents
1 Introduction to Thermodynamics
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.1.1
1.1.2
Defining Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.1.3
Closed systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.1.4
Control volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.1.5
1.1.6
1.1.7
1.1.8
Base SI units for mass, length, time, Force, energy, and pressure .
Static Fluids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1.2.1
1.2.2
1.2.3
Static Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Temperature Scales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
10
Homework set 1
1
1.1
1.1.1
Introduction to Thermodynamics
Introductory Concepts and Definitions
What is the study of thermodynamics?
Problem 1. Which of the following items does not describe the main focus of the study
of thermodynamics.
(a) energy storage
(b) the transfer of energy through heat and work
(c) how energy transforms from one form of energy, such as kinetic, into another form
(d) how energy is bought and sold on the open market
1.1.2
Defining Systems
Homework set 1
1.1.3
Closed systems
Control volume
1.1.5
Homework set 1
1.1.6
1.1.7
Problem 12. Two metal blocks, one at 50 , and the other at 0 are set next to each
other in a perfectly insulted box at time t = 0. At this instant are the blocks in thermal
equilibrium? Now suppose you wait a long time. Are they in equilibrium now?
Problem 13. In a quasi-equilibrium process, the pressure in a system
(a) is held constant throughout the entire process
(b) is approximately spatially uniform throughout the system at each moment in time
(c) increases if volume increases
(d) always varies with temperature
1.1.8
Base SI units for mass, length, time, Force, energy, and pressure
Problem 15. Express kinetic energy in terms of the base SI units: the kilogram, meter,
and second. Write your answer in terms of the abbreviations ({kg, m, s}).
Homework set 1
Problem 16. Express work (force distance) in terms of the base SI units: the kilogram,
meter, and second. Express your answer in terms of the abbreviations (kg, m, s).
Problem 17. Express P V , where P is pressure and V is volume, in terms of the base SI
units: the kilogram, meter, and second. Express your answer in terms of the abbreviations
(kg, m, s). Compare this answer to the previous one. What do you notice?
Problem 18. Express power in terms of the base SI units: the kilogram, meter, and
second. Write your answer in terms of the abbreviations ({kg, m, s}).
Problem 19. Express specific weight in terms of the base SI units: the kilogram, meter,
and second. Express your answer in terms of the abbreviations ({kg, m, s}).
Problem 20. Express specific volume in terms of the base SI units: the kilogram, meter,
and second. Express your answer in terms of the abbreviations ({kg, m, s}).
Problem 21. Which one of the following expressions can be converted to the unit of a
Joule?
(a) Pa m2
(b) Pa m3
(c) Pa/m2
(d) N/kg
(e) None of these
Homework set 1
Problem 22. Which of the following is not an acceptable extended SI unit? Recall:
The SI system is the MKS system (Meter, Kilogram, Second), but well allow the extended SI system to include the cgs system (centimeter, gram, second), but you cant
mix these two systems.
(a) distance measured in centimeters
(b) pressure measured in newtons per square meter
(c) volume measured in cubic meters
(d) density measured in grams per cubic meter
1.2
1.2.1
Static Fluids
Pascals Law and Archimedess principle
Homework set 1
1.2.2
Problem 25. The density of air is 1.3 kg/m3 . A room is 5.6 m long by 4.9 m deep by
2.4 m high. What is the mass of the air in the room? Round your answer to the nearest
km.
(a) 62 kg
(b) 69 kg
(c) 77 kg
(d) 86 kg
(e) None of these
Problem 26. The density of air at sea level is 1.20 kg/m3 . The living room in your
seaside cottage is 5.0 m wide, 4.0 m deep, and 3.0 m high. What is the weight of the air
in the room? Give your answer to the nearest pound. Recall: 1 lb = 4.448 N.
(a) 18 lb
(c) 159 lb
(e) None of these
(b) 39 lb
(d) 1752 lb
Problem 27. Your new roommate has left the water running in the sink of your rectangular water-tight dorm room, and the room is now full of water. If the dimensions of
the room are: length = 5.0 m, width = 4.0 m, and height = 3.0 m, and the density of
water is 1.0 103 kg/m3 , then what is the weight of the water in the room? Round your
answer to two significant figures.
(a) 6.5 106 N
(c) 6.0 104 N
(e) None of these
Problem 28. Your new roommate has filled his room with nitrous oxide gas, which has
a density of 1.96 kg/m3 . The room is 4.0 m long by 5.0 m wide by 3.0 m high. What is
the mass of the N2 O in the room? Round your answer to the nearest kilogram.
(a) 115 kg
(c) 118 kg
(e) None of these
(b) 57 kg
(d) 164 kg
Problem 29. Your new roommate has filled his room with helium, which has a density
of 0.18 kg/m3 . The room is 4.0 m long by 5.0 m wide by 3.0 m high. What is the mass
of the helium in the room? Round your answer to two significant figures.
(a) 0.71 kg
(c) 1.0 kg
(e) None of these
(b) 11 kg
(d) 28 kg
Homework set 1
1.2.3
Static Pressure
Problem 31. A solar-water heating system uses solar panels on the roof of a large build,
40.0 m above the storage tank. The pressure at the panels is 1 atmosphere. What is the
absolute pressure at the top of the tank?
Problem 32. A solar-water heating system uses solar panels on the roof of a large build,
40.0 m above the storage tank. The pressure at the panels is 1 atmosphere. What is the
gage pressure at the top of the tank?
Problem 33. A town in the middle-of-nowhere is built up around a large 100 meter hill.
Since the hill is in the center of a town, it is proposed at a town-hall meeting that a water
tower be placed at the top of the hill. However, the town barber points out that when
water flows through a pipe there is a great amount of resistance owing to viscosity and
turbulent mixing of the fluid. He estimates that the gauge pressure in the pipe at the
bottom of the hill must be at least 100 kPa in order for water to make it to the outskirts
of town. Find what the gauge pressure would be at the bottom of the hill.
Problem 34. A submarine has a circular top hatch with a .5 m radius. Determine the
pressure on the hatch when the sub dives down to a depth of 100 m. The relative density
of sea water is 1.03.
Problem 35. A vertical, frictionless piston-cylinder device contains a gas that is in
equilibrium with the weight of the piston balanced by the internal pressure for the gas.
Suppose the mass of the piston is mpiston , the area of the piston cylinder is Acyl , and the
atmospheric pressure outside the cylinder is Patm . Derive a formula for the gas contained
in the cylinder Pgas in terms of the given information.
Problem 36. The basic barometer can used to measure the height of a building. To
do this a measurement is made at the bottom of the building at ground level and a
second measurement is taken at the top of the building on the roof. One can then
relate these readings to pressure using the equation for a mercury-filled barometer:
Patm (hHg ) = Hg ghHg , where Hg = 13, 600 kg/m3 is the density of mercury, g is the
acceleration due to gravity, and hHg is the height of the mercury column in the barometer measured in millimeters. The approximate height of the building can then be found
by making a few simplifying assumptions. For moderate sized buildings a reasonable
assumption for the average density of air under fair weather conditions is approximately
air 1.18 Kg/m3 .
If the barometric readings at the top and bottom of a certain building are 730 mmHg
and 755 mmHg respectively, what is the height of the building?
Problem 37. A gas is contained in a vertical, frictionless piston-cylinder device. The
piston has a mass of 4 kg and cross-sectional area of 35 cm2 . A compressed spring above
the piston exerts a force of 60 N on the piston. If the atmospheric pressure is 95 kPa,
determine the pressure inside the cylinder.
Homework set 1
Problem 38. High-altitude balloons are often filled with helium gas because it weighs
only about one-seventh of what air weighs under identical conditions. The buoyancy
force, which can be expressed as Fb = air gVballoon , will push the balloon upward. If we
approximate the shape of the balloon as a sphere with a radius of 5 m and a total payload
of 140kg (including the ropes, cage, and the balloon itself), determine the acceleration
of the balloon when it is first released. Assume the density of air is air = 1.16 kg/m3 .
Problem 39. A glass tube is attached to a water pipe as shown in the figure below.
If the water pressure at the bottom of the tube is 115 kPa and the local atmospheric
pressure is Patm = 92 kPa, determine how high the water will rise in the tube, in m.
Assume g = 9.8 m/s2 at that location and take the density of water to be 103 kg/m3 .
Patm
h=?
Homework set 1
1.3
10
Temperature Scales
(c) 20 C
(d) 37 C
(e) None of these
Problem 43. Convert 68 F to C.
(a) 12 C
(b) 17 C
(c) 20 C
(d) 37 C
(e) None of these
Problem 44. Convert 110 F to C.
(a) 50 C
(b) 43 C
(c) 20 C
(d) 37 C
(e) None of these
Problem 45. Convert 20 C to F.
(a) 68 F
(b) 98 F
(c) 120 F
(d) 212 F
(e) None of these
Homework set 1
11
(b)
(d)
558 R
200 R
Note: Some books say do not use the degree symbol with the Rankine scale, since its
an absolute scale like the Kelvin scale.
Homework set 1
12
Problem 50. (Measuring wind chill) It is well-known that cold air feels much colder
in windy weather than what the thermometer reading indicates because of the chilling
effect of the wind. This effect is due to the increase in the convection heat transfer
coefficient with increasing air velocities. The equivalent wind chill temperature in F is
given by (all variables with an asterisk superscript ( ) are dimensional quantities)
Tequiv,F
( F) = Tadj,F
( F) + (Tambient,F
( F) Tadj,F
( F)) f (vb )
where f is the dimensionless function (which must have dimensionless arguments in order
to be dimensionally consistent! - for any smooth function this can be proved via a Taylor
series expansion)
and Tadj,F
= 91.4 F is a temperature adjustment term, vb is a dimensionless wind speed
that has been non-dimensionalized by miles per hour (i.e. vb = vb , (miles/hour and
Tambient
is the ambient air temperature in F in calm air, which is taken to be light
winds at speeds of no more than 4 mph. The constant 91.4 F in the above equation is
the mean temperature of a resting person in a comfortable environment. Windy air at
temperature Tambient and velocity v will feel as cold as the calm air at temperature Tequiv .
Notice that the units of the coefficients in the second factor of the second term are, in
order: dimensionless, hours per mile, and the square root of hours per mile so that the
resulting second factor is dimensionless after the dimensional variables are substituted
into the equation.
Using proper conversion factors, obtain an equivalent relation in SI units where vSI is
the dimensionless wind speed based on m/s and Tambient is ambient air temperature in
C.
Hint: When working with physical equations all terms must be dimensionally consistent.
To preserve the dimensional consistency whatever we do to one side of the equation, we
must do to the other, just as you learned in algebra.