Paper 2, Section II, D

Statistical Physics | Part II, 2009

The Van der Waals equation of state for a non-ideal gas is

(p+aN2V2)(VbN)=NkT,\left(p+\frac{a N^{2}}{V^{2}}\right)(V-b N)=N k T,

where aa and bb are constants.

(i) Briefly explain the physical motivation for differences between the Van der Waals and ideal gas equations of state.

(ii) Find the volume dependence (at constant temperature) of the internal energy EE and the heat capacity CVC_{V} of a Van der Waals gas.

(iii) A Van der Waals gas is initially at temperature T1T_{1} in an insulated container with volume V1V_{1}. A small opening is then made so that the gas can expand freely into an empty container, occupying both the old and new containers. The final result is that the gas now occupies a volume V2>V1V_{2}>V_{1}. Calculate the final temperature T2T_{2} assuming CVC_{V} is temperature independent. You may assume the process happens quasistatically.

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