So I'm having trouble defining what "volume" of a gas really means. The specific example that caused my confusion is the fact that ideal gases have zero volume, yet they occupy the standard molar volume of 22.4 L. Whats the difference between having volume and occupying volume? Thanks!
Trouble defining volume of gases
- Thread starter kkentm
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In ideal gases, the individual molecules do not take up any space. Which means that the individual molecules of the gas are basically treated as point particles.
However, they still have mass, energy, and momentum, so when they collide with the walls of the cylinder, they exert a force, which we interpret as pressure. This pressure and the temperature of the gas are related via the ideal gas equation.
When you deviate from an ideal gas, one of the things you begin to account for is the fact that the molecules aren't point particles and have some small volume which is non-trivial under certain conditions, namely high pressures and low temperatures.
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