How does Boyle's law apply to air conditioning?

Answer 1

Boyle's Law simply points out that the pressure of a gas is related to the size of its container. If a gas is compressed into a small space it will exert a lot of pressure whereas if it is allowed a lot more space it will exert less pressure. A related obsevatin is Charles' law which points out that as the temperature of a gas increases so does its volume (and vice versa). Neither of these laws applies to air conditioning perse except that they are both obsevations explained using the kinetic theory of matter. This theory states that matter is made of particles and the particles respond to increased heat energy by speeding up and spreading apart. Here is how we use this knowledge to cool air flowing through an airconditioner: When gas particles that were confined in a tight space are allowed to escape suddenly to a larger space they will expand outward rapidly filling the new space. When they do this they will inevitably lose energy. This is because the roominess of the new space allows the gas partiles to move more freely and have fewer collisions with walls and other gas particles. The fewer collisions there are the less velocity (and pressure) the gas particles will have. Think about how fast a pinball gets going when it is bouncing around from bumper to bumper vs. how slow it is going by the time it eases down to the flipper for another hit. Temperature is a measure of the speed of the particles in a substance. Fast moving particles are hotter than slow ones. Because the gas particles slow down as they spread apart, the gas cools as it expands. You might have experienced this cooling effect first hand if you have ever gotten frost bite from a spray can. Aerosol cans like spray paint bottles keep the paint under high pressure. When you press the valve down the gas escapes beneath your finger tip. This rapidly expanding gas is quite cold. Air conditioners use compressors to force freon gas into a high pressure situation. Then, the freon is allowed to move through less pressured coils where it expands and becomes cool. It gets so cold in fact that the gas particles condense back into a liquid. The liquid is then allowed to evaporate in a second set of tubes and the process is repeated. The air in the room is forced through the conditioner and over the freon tubes where it gives up its heat energy to evaporate the freon. This cools the air off. The compressor has to use lot of energy to smush that gas and this is why air conditioners suck up so much electricity...they have to keep pushing on that gas. Hope this helps.

Answer 2

Think about our lungs and the atmospheric pressure outside. To change the pressure of gas is to change the volume of its container. If lungs contain a quantity of gas & lung volume increases, their internal pressure (intrapulmonary pressure), falls. So if lung volume decreases, then pressure increases.

The atmosphere changes from place to place, higher or lower altitude, so we (our lungs) cannot assume one constant air pressure.

Inspiration = traces pressure changes

Expiration = it's a passive process, no muscular efforts.

Hahh....let me breathe...

Answer 3

Boyles gas law applies to airplanes because inside the turbine, the heat being made transfers to the airplanes tail, making force on the tip of the tail, allowing the airplane to fly. The gas law is temperature times volume squared, because inside the airplanes turbine, heat is multiplied into volume elevating the pressure to the tail.

Answer 4

No, boyles law needs to be combined with Charles law in order to be relevant in refrigeration. In refrigeration we need to remember the role temperature plays on pressure/volume.