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Vm235: Thermodynamics
Homework 2
Assigned Tues May 24, 2016; Due Tues May 31 at the start of class

Homework
These problems should be completed according to the
solution format posted on the course website.
1) An electric generator coupled to a windmill produces
an average electric power output of 5 kW, which is
used to charge a storage battery. Heat transfer from the
battery to the surroundings occurs at a constant rate of
0.6 kW. Determine the total amount of energy stored in
the battery, in kJ, in eight hours of operation. (P2.56 [1])
2) An airplane whose mass is 5000 kg is flying with a
velocity of 150 m/s at an altitude of 10000 m, both measured relative to the surface of the earth. The acceleration
of gravity can be taken as constant at g = 9.78 m/s2 .
(P2.7 [1])
a) Calculate the kinetic and potential energies of the
airplane, both in kJ.
b) If the kinetic energy increased by 10000 kJ with
no change in elevation, what would be the final
velocity, in m/s?
3) Geometrical terms in a spark-ignition (SI) engine [2].
a) Review Chris Coggons Four-Cycle Internal Combustion Engine slides (available on Sakai; launch
PowerPoint slide show, and click the Animated
slides button).
Since we will be re-visiting the SI engine regularly,
it is useful to define a few engine-related geometrical
terms at this point. These terms include
B:
S:

Vc :

Vd :

r:

The bore is the diameter of the cylinder.

The stroke is the distance traveled by the
piston in moving from top center to bottom
center, or vice versa.
The clearance volume (or VT C ) is the combustion chamber volume when the piston is at
top center.
The displacement is the volume difference between the bottom center versus the top center,
that is, Vd = VBC VT C . The displacement
is also equal to the product of the stroke
and the cross-sectional area of the cylinder,
Vd = SB 2 /4.
The compression ratio is the ratio of the
volume at bottom center to the volume at top
center, that is,
Vd
VBC
=
+1
r=
VT C
VT C

VTC

TC (top center)

B
S

BC (bottom center)

Fig. 1. Definition of geometrical parameters for reciprocating engines.

Additional geometrical parameters associated with a

reciprocating engine are also shown in Fig. 1:
` connecting rod (con-rod) length
a crank radius
crank angle
From geometrical and kinematic analyses, the instantaneous volume, V (), and its time derivative, dV ()/dt,
are given by
V ()/VT C 1

 2
1/2 
= 21 (r 1) a` + 1 cos a` 2 sin2
,

dV ()

= N Vd sin 1 + 
dt
`2
a2

cos
sin2

1/2

where N is the crank rotational speed in revolutions per

second (rev/s).
b) Search online for the engine specifications of a
vehicle (model year 2015 or later) on the Road Test
page (filetype:pdf) of the Car and Driver
magazine (site:caranddriver.com). Print
out and attach the Road Test page to your homework submission. Plot the corresponding instantaneous combustion chamber volume and its time
rate of change for a complete cycle (revolution).
Take `/a = 3.4, N = 2800 rpm.

4) The following data are taken during the compression

of carbon monoxide in a piston-cylinder apparatus
(available on Sakai as Wark_6ed_P2_57.m).
p (bar)

v (m3 /kg)

0.96
1.47
2.18
2.94
3.60

0.928
0.675
0.503
0.403
0.346

a) Plot pressure versus volume on the loglog scales

(professionally formatted, not hand-drawn), and fit
a straight line to the data. Indicate on the plot the
slope of the line.
b) Based on the slope of the fitted line, estimate the
compression work required, in kJ/kg. (P2-57 [3])
5) A wire of cross-sectional area A and initial length x0 is
stretched. The normal stress acting at the end of the
wire varies linearly with strain, , where
 = (x x0 )/x0 ,
and x is the length of the wire. (The proportionality
constant is the Youngs modulus of the material.)
Assuming the cross-sectional area of the wire remains constant, derive an expression for the work
done on the wire as a function of strain. (P2.39 [1])
The stress-strain diagram for a polyester resin is
given in Fig. 1. A wire of initial length x0 = 10 cm
and diameter d = 0.005 in = 0.127 mm (no. 36
AWG) is made from this material. What is the
amount of work done to stretch the wire by 0.1 cm?

7) A pistoncylinder device contains 0.005 m3 of liquid

water and 0.9 m3 of water vapor in equilibrium at
600 kPa. Heat is transferred at constant pressure until
the temperature reaches 200 C.
a) What is the initial temperature of the water?
b) Determine the total mass of the water.
c) Calculate the final volume.
d) Show the process on a P -v diagram with respect
to saturation lines. (Textbook, P348, 7th ed.)
The solution is provided below without annotations and
other essential elements of a complete Vm235 homework
solution. Please reproduce (i.e., copy) the partial solution below and complete it by incorporating in it your
answers to (i)(iv).
Recitation
These problems may be discussed during the recitation
session. Do not turn them in.
1) A spring whose spring constant is 3.5 kN/cm has an
initial force of 0.45 kN acting on it. Determine the work,
in kJ, required to compress it another 1 cm. (Textbook,
P230, 7th ed.)
2) 10 kg of R-134a fill a 1.348 m3 rigid container at an
initial temperature of 40 C. The container is then
heated until the pressure is 200 kPa. Determine the final
temperature and the initial pressure. Answer: 66.3 C,
51.25 kPa (Textbook, P330, 7th ed.)
3) One kilogram of water fills a 0.1546-m3 weighted
piston-cylinder device at a temperature of 350 C. The
piston-cylinder device is now cooled until its temperature is 100 C. Determine the final pressure of water,
in kPa, and the volume, in m3 . Answer: 1.8 103 kPa,
0.001043 m3 . (Textbook, P334, 7th ed.)
4) The following table lists temperatures and specific
volumes of water vapor at two pressures:
= 0.1 MPa
T ( C) v(m3 /kg)
200
240
280

Fig. 2. Polyester resin stress-strain diagram.

6) Ten kilograms of R-134a fill a 1.595 m3 weighted

pistoncylinder device at a temperature of 26.4 C.
The container is now heated until the temperature is
100 C. Determine the final volume of the R-134a.
(Textbook, P335, 7th ed.)

2.172
2.359
2.546

= 0.12 MPa
T ( C) v(m3 /kg)
200
240
280

1.808
1.965
2.120

Data encountered in solving problems often do not fall

exactly on the grid of values provided by property
tables, and linear interpolation between adjacent table
entries becomes necessary. Using the data provided here,
estimate:
a) the specific volume (in m3 /kg) at T = 200 C,
p = 0.113 MPa
b) the temperature (in C) at p = 0.12 MPa,
v = 1.85 m3 /kg
c) the temperature (in C) at p = 0.11 MPa,
v = 2.20 m3 /kg
Answer: 1.935, 210.7, 249 (P1.28 [1])

R EFERENCES
[1] M. J. Moran and H. N. Shapiro, Fundamentals of Engineering Thermodynamics, 3rd ed. Wiley, 1996.
[2] S. R. Turns, Thermal-Fluid Sciences, An Integrated Approach, Cambridge
University Press, 2006.
[3] K. Wark and D. E. Richards, Thermodynamics, 6th ed. McGraw-Hill,
1999.

Partial solution to textbook problem P348 (7th ed.)

Reproduce (i.e., copy) the partial solution below and
complete it by incorporating in it your answers to (i)(vi).
A piston-cylinder device of two-phase (liquid + vapor) water
is heated to 200 C.
(i. Sketch setup, sys. boundary, and show transfers.)
The water initial temperature T1 has to be equal to the
saturation temperature of water at the initial pressure P1 =
600 kPa,
T1 = Tsat (P1 )
(ii. Explain why.)
Therefore, according to the Steam Table A-5,
T1 = 158.83 C
The total mass of the system is given by the equation
m=

Vg1
Vf 1
+
,
vg
vf

where vg and vf are, respectively, the specific volumes of

saturated vapor and liquid water at pressure P1 . From Steam
Table A-5, vg = 0.31560 m3 /kg, vf = 0.001101 m3 /kg.
Thus, the total mass of the system is
m=

0.9 m3
0.005 m3
+
0.31560 m3 /kg 0.001101 m3 /kg

= 7.39 kg
The system mass, m, can now be used to determine its
volume V2 after heating to 200 C,
V2 = mv
(iii. In words, define the variable v and explain how its
numerical value is determined. Hence, calculate V2 .)
(iv. Sketch the process path on the P -v axes.)