MAE 3310-001: Thermodynamics I
Fall 2020
HW 1: Due – 09/13/2020; Sunday; 5:00 PM
Submit as a pdf file (legible) on canvas.
Put your name on the first page of the answer sheet
Name your file “lastname_firstname_HW 1”
Points will be deducted for incorrect file name or file format as well as for late submission
65 Points
Answer the following questions from Chapter 01
• Please state given, to find and assumptions, for numerical problems (this is just good practice)
• Also draw schematics for numerical problems
1. (1-3C) One of the most amusing things a person can experience is when a car in neutral appears to go uphill
when its brakes are released. Can this really happen or is it an optical illusion? How can you verify if a road is
pitched uphill or downhill? (2 points)
2. (1-7C) What is the net force acting on a car cruising at a constant velocity of 70 km/h (a) on a level road and (b)
on an uphill road? (2 points)
3. (1-18, 19, 20C) How would you analyze the following scenarios i.e. as control masses (closed systems) or control
volumes (open systems)? (3 points)
1) Radiator of a car – rejects heat to the air through circulating water
2) Reciprocating air compressor (piston-cylinder device)
3) Can of soft drink kept in the refrigerator to cool.
4. (1-23C) Is the state of the air in an isolated room completely specified by the temperature and the pressure?
Explain. (3 points)
5. (1-32C) Consider an alcohol and a mercury thermometer that read exactly 0°C at the ice point and 100°C at the
steam point. The distance between the two points is divided into 100 equal parts in both thermometers. Do you
think these thermometers will give exactly the same reading at a temperature of, say, 60°C? Explain. (4 points)
6. (1-33C) Consider two closed systems A and B. System A contains 3000 kJ of thermal energy at 20°C, whereas
system B contains 200 kJ of thermal energy at 50°C. Now the systems are brought into contact with each other.
Determine the direction of any heat transfer between the two systems. (3 points)
7. (1-42C) Someone claims that the absolute pressure in a liquid of constant density doubles when the depth is
doubled. Do you agree? Explain. (3 points)
8. (1-49E) A manometer is used to measure the air pressure in a tank. The fluid used has a specific gravity of 1.25,
and the differential height between the two arms of the manometer is 28 in. If the local atmospheric pressure is
12.7 psia, determine the absolute pressure in the tank for the cases of the manometer arm with the (a) higher
and (b) lower fluid level being attached to the tank. (5 points)
9. (1-54) The absolute pressure in water at a depth of 9 m is read to be 185 kPa. Determine (a) the local
atmospheric pressure, and (b) the absolute pressure at a depth of 5 m in a liquid whose specific gravity is 0.85 at
the same location. (5 points)
10. (1-64) Both a gage and a manometer are attached to a gas tank to measure its pressure as shown below. If the
reading on the pressure gage is 80 kPa, determine the distance between the two fluid levels of the manometer if
the fluid is (a) mercury (ρ = 13,600 kg/m3) or (b) water (ρ = 1000 kg/m3). (5 points)
11. (1-69E) The pressure in a natural gas pipeline is measured by the manometer shown in figure below with one of
the arms open to the atmosphere where the local atmospheric pressure is 14.2 psia. Determine the absolute
pressure in the pipeline. (5 points)
12. (1-81) Consider the system shown below. If a change of 0.7 kPa in the pressure of air causes the brine–mercury
interface in the right column to drop by 5 mm in the brine level in the right column while the pressure in the
brine pipe remains constant, determine the ratio of A2/A1. The height of water does not change and volume of
mercury remains constant. (5 points)
13. (1-91) A hydraulic lift is to be used to lift a 2500 kg weight by putting a weight of 25 kg on a piston with a
diameter of 10 cm. Determine the diameter of the piston on which the weight is to be placed. (5 points)
14. (1-110) The basic barometer can be used as an altitude-measuring device in airplanes. The ground control
reports a barometric reading of 753 mmHg while the pilot's reading is 690 mmHg. Estimate the altitude of the
plane from ground level if the average air density is 1.20 kg/m3. (5 points)
15. Convert into notated SI units up to 3 significant figures (decimal points) Show your work on the conversion. (10
points)
1) 1 ton (2,000 lbf) to N
2) 100 yd (length of a football field) to m
3) 90 ft (distance between bases) to m
4) 70 mph (highway speed limit) to m/sec
5) 1 atm pressure at sea level (14.7 psi) to kPa (kN/m2)
6) 1126 ft/sec (Mach1 @ sea level) to m/sec
7) 385 hp (Ford F-150 V-8 @5750 rpm) to kJ/sec (kW)
8) 31 mpg (Ford Fiesta 1.6L combined EPA) to km/L
9) ¼ mile (drag strip track length) to km
10) 10 acres (4,840 sq yd/acre) to km2
