If the sign contains neon at a pressure of 1.78 torr at 33 °C, how many grams of neon are in the sign? (The volume of a cylinder is mr? .)

Express your answer using two significant figures.

1 answer

To determine the mass of neon gas in the sign, we will use the Ideal Gas Law:

\[ PV = nRT \]

where:

  • \( P \) = pressure in atmospheres (atm),
  • \( V \) = volume in liters (L),
  • \( n \) = number of moles of gas,
  • \( R \) = ideal gas constant \((0.0821 , \text{L} \cdot \text{atm} / \text{mol} \cdot \text{K})\),
  • \( T \) = temperature in Kelvin (K).

Step 1: Convert the pressure from torr to atm.

  1. The conversion factor is: \(1 , \text{atm} = 760 , \text{torr}\).

\[ P = \frac{1.78 , \text{torr}}{760 , \text{torr/atm}} \approx 0.00234 , \text{atm} \]

Step 2: Convert the temperature from Celsius to Kelvin.

\[ T = 33 , \text{°C} + 273.15 = 306.15 , \text{K} \]

Step 3: We need the volume of the cylinder.

Assuming the volume \( V \) of the cylinder is given (since it’s not specified in the problem). The formula is:

\[ V = \pi r^2 h \]

You must provide the radius \( r \) and height \( h \) of the cylinder to proceed with calculations.

Step 4: Combine the equations.

To find the number of moles \( n \):

\[ n = \frac{PV}{RT} \]

Substituting in the values for \( P \) and \( T \) that we found, and using an arbitrary volume \( V \) (if not provided, specify a volume):

\[ n = \frac{(0.00234 , \text{atm}) \cdot V}{(0.0821 , \text{L} \cdot \text{atm} / \text{mol} \cdot \text{K})(306.15 , \text{K})} \]

Step 5: Calculate the mass of neon.

The molar mass of neon (Ne) is approximately \( 20.18 , \text{g/mol} \).

Then the mass \( m \) of neon can be calculated:

\[ m = n \times \text{molar mass of Ne} \]

Putting it all together:

\[ m = \left(\frac{(0.00234) \cdot V}{(0.0821)(306.15)} \right) \cdot 20.18 \]

Let's assume an arbitrary value for volume \( V \) (e.g., 1 L) to give a concrete answer, then you can adjust for actual values.

For \( V = 1 , \text{L} \):

\[ n = \frac{(0.00234) \cdot 1 , \text{L}}{(0.0821)(306.15)} \approx 0.000872 , \text{mol} \]

Now calculating the mass:

\[ m = 0.000872 , \text{mol} \cdot 20.18 , \text{g/mol} \approx 0.0176 , \text{g} \]

Final Answer:

If \( V = 1 , \text{L} \), then the mass of neon in the sign is:

\[ 0.0176 , \text{g} \quad \text{(to 2 significant figures: } 0.018 , \text{g)} \]

Note: Please replace \( V \) with the actual measured volume of your specific cylinder to get the precise answer.