CIA Demonstration: The Potato Cannon (5.1.6)

Question 1

• The expansion of gas in a potato cannon after it ignites is due to Charles’s law and Avogadro’s Law.

Answer 1

• The expansion of gas in a potato cannon after it ignites is due to Charles’s law and Avogadro’s Law.

Question 2

The expansion of gas in a potato cannon after the
fuel (hairspray) is ignited forces the potato out of the
cannon. The expansion is due to Charles’s law and
Avogadro’s law. Charles’s law states that, for a given amount of gas at constant pressure, the volume is directly proportional to the temperature. The combustion
reaction that occurs when the fuel is ignited is
exothermic. When temperature increases, volume
also increases. Avogadro’s law states that the volume of a gas is directly proportional to the number of moles of gas, at fixed temperature and pressure. Burning the
hairspray results in an increase in the number of
moles of gas, so the volume increases.

Answer 2

The expansion of gas in a potato cannon after the
fuel (hairspray) is ignited forces the potato out of the
cannon. The expansion is due to Charles’s law and
Avogadro’s law. Charles’s law states that, for a given amount of gas at constant pressure, the volume is directly proportional to the temperature. The combustion
reaction that occurs when the fuel is ignited is
exothermic. When temperature increases, volume
also increases. Avogadro’s law states that the volume of a gas is directly proportional to the number of moles of gas, at fixed temperature and pressure. Burning the
hairspray results in an increase in the number of
moles of gas, so the volume increases.