Grade 10 Physics · Strand 1: Mechanics and Thermal Physics · Temperature and Thermal Expansion
Thermal Expansion in Matter
A short Grade 10 Physics lesson for the CBE curriculum, part of Mechanics and Thermal Physics: Temperature and Thermal Expansion. Learn it on any phone with notes and slides, then check yourself with a quick quiz and earn XP. This lesson is free.
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1. A Grade 10 learner heats a solid, a liquid and a gas by the same temperature rise. Why does the gas expand the most?
- A. Gas particles become larger when heated
- B. Intermolecular forces in a gas are negligible, so the particles can move far apart
- C. Gas particles stop moving when heated
- D. Gases are always at a lower temperature than solids
2. A steel rail on the Standard Gauge Railway is 60 m long. Its temperature rises by 35 K. The expansivity of steel is 1.2 × 10^{-5} K^{-1}. Calculate the increase in length of the rail in centimetres.
Type your answer (in cm) in the lesson.
3. A lorry is parked in the midday sun in Garissa. Its steel tank is full of petrol, and petrol spills out as both heat up. Why does the petrol overflow even though the tank also expands?
- A. Petrol expands much more than steel for the same temperature rise
- B. Steel contracts when it is heated
- C. Petrol particles are heavier than steel particles
- D. The tank does not get hotter than the petrol
4. Many long bridges have one end resting on roller bearings and comb-like expansion joints in the roadway. What is the reason for this design?
- A. To make the bridge look more attractive
- B. To reduce the mass of the bridge
- C. To allow the bridge to expand and contract with temperature without building up damaging stress
- D. To stop the bridge from conducting heat
5. Name the nickel-steel alloy with a very low expansivity that is used for clock pendulums and surveyors' measuring tapes.
Type your answer in the lesson.
More in Temperature and Thermal Expansion
- Engineering Applications and Consequences of Solid Expansion
- Thermal Expansion of Liquids
- Anomalous Expansion of Water
- Thermal Expansion of Gases
- Revision and Practical Assessment of Thermal Phenomena
- Introduction to Moments and Turning Effects
- The Principle of Moments
- Centre of Gravity of Regular and Irregular Laminae
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