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At 12:34 PM 3/16/00 -0800, Steve Hogan wrote: Hello Andreas, >err... So you're saying that it takes LESS energy to heat Helium than air?? >Well, not according to a nationally used collection of tables and formulas in Sweden. >The specific heat-capacity of air is 1 kiloJoule/kg*K. (Which means that is takes one kiloJoule to heat 1 kilo of gas 1 degree (Kelvin)) >And the specific heat-capacity of Helium is 5.1 kJ/kgK. Which in the same way as above means that it takes 5.1 kiloJoule to heat 1 kilo of Helium 1 degree. > >Since when is 5 kiloJoules LESS than 1 kJ??? > >This seems all pretty simple to me, but I might have misunderstood the whole thing. If so, please correct me. You're comparing the specific heat of the two gasses by mass, not by volume. A lungful of N2 has a greater mass than a lungful of He. If you convert the numbers to equivalent volumes, you'll find that, all else being equal, a given volume of N2 will take more energy to heat than the same volume of He. He: 21 Joule/Kelvin Mole N2: 29 Joules/Kelvin Mole Hope this helps... -Mike Rodriguez <mikey@ma*.co*> Pn(x) = (1/(2^n)n!)[d/dx]^n(x^2 - 1)^n -- Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@aquanaut.com'. Send subscribe/unsubscribe requests to `techdiver-request@aquanaut.com'.
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