A steel tank containing helium is cooled to
15 C. If you could look into the tank and see
the gas molecules, what would you observe?
If a steel tank containing helium is cooled to 15°C, the gas molecules inside the tank would exhibit certain observable behaviors.
Firstly, as the temperature of the gas decreases, the gas molecules would have lower kinetic energy. This would cause them to slow down and move at a slower average speed compared to when the gas is at a higher temperature. At 15°C, the helium gas molecules would be moving relatively slower.
Additionally, cooling the gas would also cause the gas molecules to come closer together. This is because at lower temperatures, the gas molecules lose some of their energy and are less able to overcome the attractive forces between them. As a result, the helium gas molecules would condense and occupy a smaller volume within the tank compared to when the gas is at a higher temperature.
If you could look into the tank and observe the gas molecules, you would likely see them moving at a slower pace and being closer together compared to their behavior at higher temperatures. However, it's important to note that observing individual gas molecules directly is not possible due to their incredibly small size and the limitations of human perception. Instead, scientists often use specialized equipment such as high-speed cameras or sophisticated imaging techniques to indirectly study gas molecules and their behavior.