Thermal and Chemical Energy Problems

Thermal and Chemical Energy		Home Problem Sets Kinematics Momentum Rotational Motion Energy Background Theory Goals Current Voices Note on Stereotypes Guidelines References Project History Timeline Authors Acknowledgements Project Evaluation Links Download Problems

	4.1) Fueling a Thunderstorm* Scientists say that the energy in severe thunderstorms comes from the heat released when water vapor condenses into liquid. If a powerful thunderstorm releases 10 million kilowatt-hours of energy over the course of an hour, what volume of water must have condensed? NOAA 4.2) Bake Time** Hal has just finished baking his grandmother’s cake. His apartment is very hot, and he does not want the oven’s heat to make him any more uncomfortable, so he decides to put a pan of water in the oven to “soak up” the heat. When the oven and water are the same temperature, Hal pours the water outside on his garden. The initial oven temperature is 325^o F, and has a volume of 0.968 m³. Inside the insulation, the oven consists of 24 kg of stainless steel. Hal puts in a pan of water at 50^oF. The stainless steel pan has a mass of 600 g and holds 2 L of water. If the oven is not airtight and the molar mass of air is 28.98 g/mole, what is the initial volume of air in the oven? Assuming the oven is perfectly insulated, what is the final temperature of the water when Hal pours it out on his garden? Does the air in the oven contribute significantly to the heat? Why or why not? 4.3) Photosynthesis* Green plants have the incredible ability to trap energy from the sun by the process of photosynthesis. The general equation for this reaction is: light + 6CO`2` + 6H`2`O -->C`6`H`12`O`6` + 6O`2` + heat. The average wavelength of light used in photosynthesis is 690 nm, and it takes 8 photons of light at a minimum to fix each of the 6 required CO`2` molecules in glucose. What is the minimum energy it takes to run one reaction? Carbohydrates, like glucose, yield 4 kcal/gram. How efficient is the plant’s conversion of radiant energy to chemical energy? Sarah Matthews Top Energy Problems

Posted on 8/1/05 © 2000-2005 Physics For Everyone. All Rights Reserved. Read our Legal Statement and Privacy Policy