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GCE O-Level (Singapore) Thermodynamics — practice questions

Explore 28 free Thermodynamics questions in GCE O-Level (Singapore) Physics. Open each question or exercise to read its content, reference answers and available explanation.

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Thermodynamics questions and exercises with answers

Showing questions 1–28 of 28.

NEET · Physics · Thermodynamic ProcessesRead the answer and worked solution →When are two objects in contact said to be in thermal equilibrium?Read the answer and worked solution →The zeroth law of thermodynamics is compared to which mathematical property?Read the answer and worked solution →Why is the zeroth law of thermodynamics given a number lower than the first and second laws?Read the answer and worked solution →How is pressure defined in terms of force and area?Read the answer and worked solution →What is the SI unit of pressure?Read the answer and worked solution →In the ideal gas law PV = NkT, what does the symbol N represent?Read the answer and worked solution →What is the value of the Boltzmann constant k used in the ideal gas law?Read the answer and worked solution →A gas held at a constant pressure of 20 Pa expands, increasing its volume by 3.0 cubic metres. How much work does the gas do on its surroundings?Read the answer and worked solution →In a process, 25 J is transferred into a system by heat and 45 J is transferred out. What is the net heat transfer, Q?Read the answer and worked solution →In the first law equation, ΔU = Q minus W, what sign convention applies to Q and W?Read the answer and worked solution →What is internal energy, as defined for a physical system?Read the answer and worked solution →During photosynthesis, plants convert incoming solar radiation into which form of energy?Read the answer and worked solution →How does eating relate to the first law of thermodynamics, as applied to the human body?Read the answer and worked solution →What does entropy measure in a physical system?Read the answer and worked solution →1.00 kg of ice at 0 degrees Celsius (273 K) absorbs 3.34 x 10^5 J of heat while melting into water at 0 degrees Celsius. What is the increase in entropy?Read the answer and worked solution →3.00 kg of ice at 0 degrees Celsius (273 K) melts into water at 0 degrees Celsius. Using Lf(water) = 334 kJ/kg, what is the increase in entropy?Read the answer and worked solution →If 120 J of heat is transferred into a system at a constant temperature of 350 K, what is the change in entropy?Read the answer and worked solution →How much heat must transfer energy into a system at 400 K to produce an entropy change of 35 J/K?Read the answer and worked solution →Can the entropy of one part of the universe, such as a system built by doing work, ever decrease?Read the answer and worked solution →What does a heat engine do?Read the answer and worked solution →What is a cyclical process, as used to describe heat engines?Read the answer and worked solution →A heat engine is given 120 J of heat and releases 20 J of heat to the environment. How much work does it do?Read the answer and worked solution →A heat engine takes in 6.0 kJ of heat and produces 4.8 kJ of waste heat. What is its efficiency?Read the answer and worked solution →A coal power station operates at 40.0 percent efficiency and takes in 1.20 x 10^12 J by heat. How much work does it do?Read the answer and worked solution →A coal power station transfers 3.0 x 10^12 J by heat from burning coal and releases 1.5 x 10^12 J by heat into the environment. What is its efficiency?Read the answer and worked solution →In the heat pump described, which component raises the temperature and pressure of the working fluid using electrical work?Read the answer and worked solution →What condition would be required for a heat engine to reach 100 percent thermal efficiency?Read the answer and worked solution →

Worked practice questions

NEET · Physics · Thermodynamic Processes

Read exercise and reference answers
Matching pairs
  1. Left
    Isothermal
    Right
    T = constant
  2. Left
    Isobaric
    Right
    P = constant
  3. Left
    Isochoric
    Right
    V = constant
  4. Left
    Adiabatic
    Right
    Q = 0
  5. Left
    Cyclic process
    Right
    ΔU = 0 over one cycle
  6. Left
    Free expansion
    Right
    W = 0, Q = 0
Instructions
Match each thermodynamic process to its defining constraint.

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When are two objects in contact said to be in thermal equilibrium?

  1. When they are at the same pressure
  2. When they are at the same temperature
  3. When they have equal masses
  4. When they have equal volumes
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Correct answer: B. When they are at the same temperature

1. When two objects in contact reach the same temperature, no more net heat transfer occurs between them. 2. This condition, where temperatures are equal and stable, is called thermal equilibrium. 3. Pressure, mass, and volume are separate physical quantities and are not what defines thermal equilibrium. 4. So equal temperature is correct. _Source: OpenStax Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 12 "Thermodynamics", section 12.1 Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics: Thermal Equilibrium_

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The zeroth law of thermodynamics is compared to which mathematical property?

  1. The distributive property
  2. The transitive property
  3. The commutative property
  4. The associative property
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Correct answer: B. The transitive property

1. The transitive property of equality states that if a equals b and b equals c, then a equals c. 2. The zeroth law is compared directly to this transitive property, since equal temperatures behave the same way. 3. The commutative and associative properties describe reordering or regrouping terms, not chains of equality. 4. The distributive property spreads multiplication over addition, which is unrelated to this comparison. 5. So the transitive property of equality is correct. _Source: OpenStax Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 12 "Thermodynamics", section 12.1 Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics: Thermal Equilibrium_

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More Physics topics

Thermal Energy, Heat, and Work