Specific Heat Ratio

Ramon Paolo T. Quintero *,

Department of Chemical Engineering, University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City 1101 Philippines
*Corresponding author: quintero_ramonpaolo@yahoo.com
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Abstract
An important quantity in adiabatic calculations is the heat capacity ratio. It can
be determined experimentally using Ruchardts Method. The average period of
the underdamped oscillation of the gas pressure with time was determined for
various initial displacements. The solution of the second-order differential
equation describing this oscillatory moton was linearized by plotting
vs.
. The equation of the best fit line was then used to determine the value
of the ratio as well as the damping parameters. Since, the average experimental
value obtained was 1.63, which deviated 16.4% from 1.4, the experiments
objectives were met with success

1. Introduction
In thermodynamics, a process is referred to as adiabatic if there is no heat transfer between the system and its
surroundings. Equation 1 is used to describe a mechanically reversible adiabatic process of an ideal gas.
(1)
The

present in the equation above is called the specific heat ratio, defined by
(2)

where
and
are heat capacities at constant pressure and volume, respectively. The specific heat ratio is
important in adiabatic process calculations, which are often used by engineers to describe processes in which heat
transfer is insignificant to be neglected.
The constant can be experimentally determined using Ruchardts Method, developed by Eduard Ruchardt, a
German physicist. It involves the analysis of the oscillatory motion of a gas piston given a small vertical
displacement. It is described by the second-order differential equation
(3)
where m is the piston mass, A is its cross-sectional area, P is the pressure of the piston gas,
is the angular
frequency and b is the damping parameter, in order to account for the friction between the piston and the walls of
the gas container. The solution for the differential equation above can be expressed as
(4)

Upon linearization of Equation (4), a

vs.
plot will give the vaof the t```he heat ratio, . The experiment
aims to determine the heat capacity ratio of air using Ruchardts Method and compare it with the theoretical value of
1.40. Furthermore, it also aims to determine the parameters describing the oscillatory motion of the piston.

2. Methodology
The experimental setup consisted of a PascoTM heat engine apparatus and a gas pressure sensor connected both to
the heat engine apparatus and a Vernier LabQuest, as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Equipment used in Ruchardts Method: PASCOTM

heat engine apparatus, gas sensor connected to Vernier LabQuest

The piston of the heat engine apparatus had a diameter of 32.5 mm and a mass of 35 g. After connecting the gas
pressure sensor to the heat engine apparatus and the Vernier LabQuest, data were collected for 5 s with a sampling
rate of 500 samples/s. This is to ensure that the graph generated will be smooth. The platform was lightly tapped to
provide asmall initial downward displacement. The average period was determined using the P vs. t graph, using the
formula
(5)
where
is the time for which the entire oscillation occurred and is the number of crests of the wave. Afterwards,
a
vs.
plot was generated and the equation of the best fit line was used to determine the experimental value
of . For the sake of statistical analysis, two trials were performed.

3. Results and Discussion

Assuming relatively low damping, the solution of the second-order differential equation Equation (3) is shown in
Equation (6).
(

(6)

As suggested by the solution above, the oscillation of the piston is damped. This is due to the friction present
between the piston and the walls of the cylinder. As a result, the pressure of the gas in the apparatus also oscillates in
the same manner. The pressure-time plot is given by Figure 2.

Figure 2. Pressure vs. time graph for yo = 0.090 m

Pressure vs. time graphs were generated for each yo value, and by using these graphs, the average period of the
oscillation was determined using Equation (5).
was plotted against
, resulting to a linear plot. The equation
of the best-fit line was determined using the Method of Least Squares. The
and
values are summarized in
Table 1 and the plots, along with the best-fit line equations, for the two trials are shown in Figure 3.
2

Table 1.

and

Trial 1
13.33333
12.5
11.76471
11.11111
10.52632

Figure 3.

values
Trial 2

566.8934
369.8225
244.1406
198.3733
156.25

vs.

13.33333
12.5
11.76471
11.11111
10.52632

500.478
416.4931
229.5684
187.6525
164.3655

plot for Trial 1 (top) and Trial 2 (bottom)

Using the equation of the best-fit line, the value for may be obtained with its slope, and the value of the
damping parameter b may be determined using the y-intercept. Equations (7) and (8) give the formula for and ,
respectively.
(7)

(8)

The summary of results is found in Table 2.

Table 2. Summary of Results
Trial 1

Trial 2
(Ns/m)

(Ns/m)
1.713445

164.6829

1.545162

154.9738

Based from the values of the damping parameter b in Table 2, the oscillation of the piston is underdamped,
which is clearly seen Figure 2. The piston oscillates with decreasing amplitude, gradually approaching zero. Thus,
the assumption made in order to solve Equation (3) is valid.
In the experiment, only high piston heights (0.075 m and higher) were considered. This is to decrease the
deviation introduced during the determination of the period graphically. Consider Figure 4.

Figure 4. Superimposed pressure-time plots for various yo values

As seen in Figure 4, the lower amplitude, that is, the distance between the axis and the trough, increases with the
piston height. The upper amplitude, or the crest-axis distance is not considered as it is caused by the force applied
upon tapping the piston in order to give it an initial downward displacement. The higher the amplitude, the more
distinct the peaks are. When they are more distinct, less deviation will be introduced by the graphical determination
of the period.
Various statistical parameters were used in order to test the reliability of the obtained results. They are
summarized in Table 3.
Table 3. Statistical Parameters
% error
Mean
Std. Dev.
Range
Confidence
Limits

Trial 1
Trial 2
22.38892
10.36873
1.629303502
0.118993796
0.16828264
1.6293 0.530932

Based on Table 3, the values obtained are generally close to the theoretical value of 1.4. The average value of the
heat ratio only deviated 16.4% from the actual value. The measures of dispersion are also low, which means that the
values obtained generally agree with each other. Also, the theoretical value is within the interval 1.63 0.53.
Possible sources of error may include air leakage from the heat engine apparatus, variance in the force applied in
tapping, the uncertainty introduced by graphically determining the average period of the oscillation. Also, the nonideality of the gas used might have led to deviation; the theoretical value is established on principles of ideal gases.
Presence of other gases, other than air, such as water vapor, might have also been a source of error.

4. Conclusion
The heat capacity ratio is an important value in the analysis of adiabatic process. In the experiment, it was
determined using Ruchardts Method, which involved the oscillation of a piston, given an initial displacement. The
solution of the differential equation related to this motion was linearized by plotting
vs.
. The value of the
ratio was determined using the equation of the best fit line. Due to the small deviation of the experimental values to
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the theoretical ones, it can be concluded that the objectives of the experiment was met with a significant degree of
success.

References
1. Young, H., University Physics, 12th ed., Addison-Wesley Publishing Co. USA (2007).
2. Physics Laboratory Manual, National Institute of Physics, University of the Philippines Diliman (2007).
3. Smith, J., Van Ness H.C., Abbott, M., Introduction to Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics, 7th ed, McGrawHill Publishing, USA (2005)