Chemistry

Problem

Two gases occupy two containers

A

and

B

. The gas in

A

of volume

0.11\text{ m}^3

exerts a pressure of

1.38\text{ MPa}

. The gas in

B

of volume

0.16\text{ m}^3

exerts a pressure of

0.69\text{ MPa}

. Two containers are united by a tube of negligible volume and the gases are allowed to intermingle. What is the final pressure in the container if the temperature remains constant?

Intuitive explanation

When two separate gas samples mix, the total amount of gas (in moles) is conserved, and at constant temperature, you can use the ideal gas law to track what happens. The key insight is that $PV$ is proportional to the number of moles in each container, so the total $PV$ before mixing equals the total $PV$ after—you're just redistributing the same gas molecules across a larger combined volume.

Intuitive explanation

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