AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING
Second Semester 2019/2020 Session Continuous Assessment

MODEL ANSWERS
MEEN 208: Basic Engineering Thermodynamics Date: 20th September, 2021
Instruction: Attempt any THREE (3) questions ONLY Time allowed: 1 hour 30 min

Question 1
a) Give four characteristics of a compressed liquid. [2.0 marks]
The following are five properties of compressed liquid (any four are acceptable):

• Higher pressures (P > Psat at a given T ) 0.5

• Lower temperatures (T < Tsat at a given P) 0.5

• Lower specific volumes (v < vf at a given P or T ) 0.5

• Lower internal energies (u < uf at a given P or T ) 0.5

• Lower enthalpies (h < hf at a given P or T ). 0.5

b) Copy and complete the following Table [3.0 marks]

S/No Boundary Constraints or Interactions

1 Isolated No interactions can occur
0.5

2 Open 0.5
Any interaction is possible

3 Semi-permeable Penetrable by some chemical species, but not by others; all

other interactions are possible.
0.5

4 Insulated Thermal interactions are not possible, but non-thermal

interactions can occur. 0.5

5 Rigid Boundary cannot be mechanically deformed 0.5

6 Closed Impenetrable by matter, but other kinds of interactions can

0.5
occur.

c) Determine the specific volume of water vapor at 25 MPa and 390°C, using:
i. The ideal-gas equation [2.0 marks]
ii. Steam tables [2.0 marks]
iii. Which of the calculated value (i) or (ii) is more accurate and why? [1.0 marks]
(Take R = 461.5 Pa·m3/kg·K)

i) Given: P = 25 MPa = 25 x 106 Pa, 0.5

T = 390oC = (390 + 273.15) K = 663.15 K

Ideal gas equation is

1
 0.5
𝑃𝜈 = 𝑅𝑇
𝑚3
𝑅𝑇 (461.5 𝑃𝑎.𝑘𝑔 𝐾)(663.15 𝐾) 𝑚3
∴ 𝜈= = = 0.0122 41 𝑘𝑔 0.5
𝑃 25×106 𝑃𝑎
0.5

ii) From Table A6, at P = 25 MPa we have 0.5

At 375oC, 𝑣 = 0.001978 𝑚3 /𝑘𝑔 0.5

At 400 oC, 𝑣 = 0.006005 𝑚3 /𝑘𝑔

Let us use linear interpolation to find the specific volume at 390oC

𝑣 − 0.001978 390 − 375

= 0.5
0.006005 − 0.001978 400 − 375

𝑚3
𝑣 = 0.004394 0.5
𝑘𝑔

iii) The value obtained from the steam tables is more accurate than the one obtained using
the ideal gas equation.
0.5
This is because the pressure of the water vapour in this case is high (> P cr), and at such
conditions the ideal gas equation does not perform well.
0.5

Question 2
a) State Pascal’s Law [2.0 marks]

Pascal’s Law: The pressure applied to a confined fluid increases the pressure throughout by the same
amount. 2.0

b) The temperature of a system drops by 170 °F during a cooling process. Express this drop in
temperature in Celsius, Kelvins, and Rankine. [3.0 marks]

The drop in temperature in other temperature units are as follows:

1℃
170℉ ( ) = 94.4 ℃ 1.0
1.8 ℉
1℃ 1𝐾
170℉ ( )( ) = 94.4 𝐾 1.0
1.8 ℉ 1 ℃
1𝑅
170℉ ( ) = 170 𝑅 1.0
1℉

c) A hydraulic lift is to be used to lift a 1750-kg weight on a piston with a diameter of 1.2 m by putting
a weight of 75 kg on a piston with an unknown diameter D. Determine
i) the unknown diameter [3.0 marks]
ii) the ideal mechanical advantage of the hydraulic lift. [2.0 marks]

i)

2
 0.5

The pressure on the smaller piston is given by

𝐹1 𝑚1 𝑔
𝑃1 = = 0.25
𝐴1 𝜋𝐷12 /4
While that on the larger piston is given by
𝐹2 𝑚2 𝑔
𝑃2 = = 0.25
𝐴2 𝜋𝐷22 /4

According to Pascal’s principle, the pressure on the smaller piston is equal to the pressure on
the larger piston. Thus

𝑃1 = 𝑃2 0.5

𝑚1 𝑔 𝑚2 𝑔
=
𝜋𝐷1 /4 𝜋𝐷22 /4
2 0.5

𝑚1 𝑚2
=
𝐷12 𝐷22

𝑚1 0.5
𝐷1 = 𝐷2 √
𝑚2
75 𝑘𝑔
𝐷1 = (1.2 𝑚)√1750 𝑘𝑔 = 0.248 𝑚 0.5

ii) Ideal mechanical advantage is given by

𝐴2 𝜋𝐷22 /4 𝐷22 𝑚2 1750 𝑘𝑔

= 2 = 2 = = ≈ 23 1.0
𝐴1 𝜋𝐷1 /4 𝐷1 𝑚1 75 𝑘𝑔
1.0

Question 3
a) State the difference between intensive and extensive properties and give two examples of each.
[3.0 marks]

Intensive properties do not depend on the size (extent) of the system but extensive properties do. 1.0

Examples of intensive properties: pressure, temperature, density, refractive index, speed of sound,
viscosity, specific volume, specific enthalpy, specific internal energy, quality, etc [Any 2 valid
examples are okay, 0.5 marks for each example]
1.0

3
 Examples of extensive properties: mass, volume, internal energy, enthalpy, entropy, etc. [Any 2 valid
examples are okay, 0.5 marks for each example] 1.0

b) What is the difference between saturated vapor and superheated vapor? [1.0 marks]

A vapor that is about to condense is saturated vapor; otherwise, it is superheated vapor. 1.0

c) A 2.5-m3 rigid tank contains steam at 320°C. Two-third of the volume is in the liquid phase and the
rest is in the vapour form. Determine
i) the quality of the saturated mixture, and [4.0 marks]
ii) the density of the mixture. [2.0 marks]

Properties: From Table A-4

At 320℃, 𝑣𝑓 = 0.001499 m3/kg and vg = 0.015470 m3/kg 0.5

Analysis (i) Two phases coexist in equilibrium; thus, we have a saturated liquid-vapor mixture.
The total mass and the quality are determined as

𝑉𝑓 2/3 × 𝑉 2/3 × (2.5 𝑚3 ) 1.0

𝑚𝑓 = = = = 1,111.8 𝑘𝑔
𝑣𝑓 𝑣𝑓 0.001499
𝑉𝑔 1/3 × 𝑉 1/3 × (2.5 𝑚3 ) 1.0
𝑚𝑔 = = = = 53.86 𝑘𝑔
𝑣𝑔 𝑣𝑔 0.015470

𝑚𝑡 = 𝑚𝑓 + 𝑚𝑔 = 1,111.8 𝑘𝑔 + 53.86 𝑘𝑔 = 1,165.6 𝑘𝑔 0.5

𝑚𝑔 53.86
𝑥= = = 0.0462 1.0
𝑚𝑡 1,165.6
(ii) Density is the inverse of specific volume. So, let us first calculate the specific volume of
the saturated liquid-vapor mixture

𝑣 = 𝑣𝑓 + 𝑥(𝑣𝑔 − 𝑣𝑓 ) = 0.001499 + 0.0462(0.015470 − 0.001499) = 0.002144 𝑚3 /kg

0.5 0.5

1 1
𝜌= = = 466.4 𝑘𝑔/𝑚3
𝑣 0.002144 𝑚3/kg 1.0

Question 4
a) State the Zeroth Law of thermodynamics and explain its implication. [2.0 marks]

Zeroth Law: If two bodies are in thermal equilibrium with a third body, they are also in thermal
equilibrium with each other. 1.0

Implication: If we want to know if two bodies are at the same temperature, it is not necessary to bring
them into contact and see whether their observable properties change with time, it is necessary only to
see if they are individually in thermal equilibrium with a third body. 1.0

b) Explain the similarities between heat and work energy transfer mechanisms. [2.0 marks]

4
 Similarities between heat and work energy transfer mechanisms:
• Both heat and work are boundary phenomena. 0.5

• Systems possess energy, but not heat or work. 0.5

• Both are associated with a process, not a state. 0.5

• Both are path functions not point functions (i.e. Work and Heat are quantities which cannot be located
as a point on a graph, unlike temperature, pressure or volume)
0.5

c) The piston of a vertical piston–cylinder device containing nitrogen gas has a mass of 85 kg and a cross-
sectional area of 0.05 m2. The local atmospheric pressure is 95 kPa, and the gravitational acceleration
is 9.81 m/s2.
i) Determine the pressure inside the cylinder. [5.0 marks]
ii) If some heat is transferred to the gas and its volume is tripled, do you expect the pressure inside
the cylinder to change? [1.0 marks]

i) Draw a free body diagram and balance the forces on the piston

0.5

𝑃𝐴 = 𝑃𝑎𝑡𝑚 𝐴 + 𝑊 1.0

Thus,
𝑚𝑔 0.5
𝑃 = 𝑃𝑎𝑡𝑚 +
𝐴
𝑚
(85 𝑘𝑔) (9.81 ) 1 𝑃𝑎 1 𝑘𝑃𝑎 2.0
= 95 𝑘𝑃𝑎 + 𝑠2 ( )( )
0.05 𝑚2 −1
1 𝑘𝑔 𝑚 𝑠 −2 1000 𝑃𝑎
= 111.67 kPa 1.0

ii) The pressure inside the container is not expected to change because the pressure is dependent
on Patm, m, g, and A and we don’t expect any of them to change due to the heat transferred
to the gas.
1.0