A cylinder of compressed helium gas is used to inflate balloons.
Describe the arrangement of helium molecules inside an inflated balloon.
State and explain how the magnitude of the attractive forces between gas molecules compares with the magnitude of the attractive forces between molecules in a solid.
The helium in the cylinder has a volume of 8.0×10−3 m38.0 \times 10^{-3}\text{ m}^38.0×10−3 m3 and is at an initial pressure of 3.3×106 Pa3.3 \times 10^6\text{ Pa}3.3×106 Pa.
The pressure of helium in each inflated balloon is 1.2×105 Pa1.2 \times 10^5\text{ Pa}1.2×105 Pa. The volume of each inflated balloon is 4.0×10−3 m34.0 \times 10^{-3}\text{ m}^34.0×10−3 m3. The temperature of the helium remains constant throughout the process.
Calculate the number of balloons that can be fully inflated.
Later, the temperature of the helium inside the inflated balloons increases, causing some of them to burst. Explain why this happens, referring to the behavior of the gas molecules.
126 exam-style questions on CIE IGCSE Physics 2.1.3a The absolute scale of temperature. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.