Question 6/13An air tank is exposed to ambient temperature.If you set the air pressure of the tank to 35 psi for a leak test and find that 24 hours later the tank's pressure has increased, what could've happened?The tank leakedThe tank drew in additional airThe ambient temperature increasedThe ambient temperature decreased

According to the ideal gas law (\(PV = nRT\)), the pressure (\(P\)) of a gas is directly proportional to its temperature (\(T\)) when the volume (\(V\)) and the amount of gas (\(n\)) are constant.

• The tank leaked: Pressure would decrease.
• The tank drew in additional air: Unlikely without a mechanism for air intake.
• The ambient temperature increased: Would cause the pressure to increase.
• The ambient temperature decreased: Would cause the pressure to decrease.

Therefore, if the tank's pressure increased after 24 hours, it is likely because the ambient temperature increased.

Supplemental Knowledge

Gay-Lussac's Law in thermodynamics describes the relationship between gas pressure and temperature by asserting that any given mass of gas changes its pressure directly in relation to absolute temperature when its volume remains constant. Mathematically, it can be expressed as:
\[P \propto T\]
where \(P\) is the pressure and \(T\) is the absolute temperature (measured in Kelvin).

Life in Context 

Imagine this: your car tire's pressure changes with temperature changes due to Gay-Lussac's Law; as its temperature climbs so will its pressure. You might see this rise between morning and afternoon measurements due to Gay-Lussac's Law.

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