alleryStart learning →In the van der Waals equation, what does the constant b account for?
AThe strength of molecular attraction
BThe size of the molecules themselves
CThe kinetic energy of the molecules
DThe number of collisions per second
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. The size of the molecules themselves
1. The van der Waals equation adds one correction for molecular volume and one for molecular attraction.
2. The volume correction is n times b, subtracted from the container volume, so b measures the size of the molecules.
3. The pressure correction is n squared times a over V squared, so a measures the strength of the attraction.
4. Carbon tetrachloride has a b of 0.1383 L/mol against helium's 0.0237 L/mol, which fits the far larger molecule.
_Source: OpenStax Chemistry (CC BY 4.0), Ch 9 "Gases", section 9.6 Non-Ideal Gas Behavior_
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