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Gas Laws in the World of Aeronautics

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This lesson provided by:

Author:	Whitney Swinney
System:	Colbert County
School:	Colbert County Board Of Education
And
Author:	Jennifer Lauderdale
System:	Marion County
School:	Phillips High School
The event this resource created for:	NASA

General Lesson Information

Lesson Plan ID:	34414
Title:	Gas Laws in the World of Aeronautics
Overview/Annotation:	Students investigate the properties of gasses using the gas laws and explore the application to aeronautics. This lesson is adapted from the NASA Education Guide Pushing the Envelope: A NASA Guide to Engines. The activities used include the following: Gas Laws (pg 27-28); Gas Law Problems - Boyle's Law (pg 29-30); Gas Law Problems - Charles's Law (pg 31-32); Gas Law Problems - Gay Lussac's Law (pg 33-34); Air Density (pg 61-62). This lesson was created as part of the 2016 NASA STEM Standards of Practice Project, a collaboration between the Alabama State Department of Education and NASA Marshall Space Flight Center.

Associated Standards and Objectives

Content Standard(s):

Science
SC2015 (2015)
Grade: 9-12
Chemistry

7 ) Plan and carry out investigations to explain the behavior of ideal gases in terms of pressure, volume, temperature, and number of particles.

a. Use mathematics to describe the relationships among pressure, temperature, and volume of an enclosed gas when only the amount of gas is constant.

b. Use mathematical and computational thinking based on the ideal gas law to determine molar quantities.

Unpacked Content

Scientific And Engineering Practices:

Planning and Carrying out Investigations; Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking

Crosscutting Concepts: Scale, Proportion, and Quantity; Energy and Matter

Disciplinary Core Idea: Matter and Its Interactions

Evidence Of Student Attainment:

Students:

Plan an investigation, considering the types of data, how much data, and accuracy of data needed to produce reliable measurements.
Evaluate investigation design to determine the accuracy and precision of the data collected, as well as limitations of the investigation.
Use evidence from investigation to explain the relationships among pressure, volume, temperature, and number of particles in a gaseous system.
Mathematically describe the relationships of pressure, temperature, and volume of an enclosed gas, when only the amount of gas is constant.
In terms of the ideal gas law, determine molar quantities using mathematical and computational thinking.
Analyze, represent, and model data related to the gas laws using mathematical and computational thinking.

Teacher Vocabulary:

Pressure
Volume
Temperature
Number of particles
System
Atomic/ molecular level
Macroscopic level
independent variable
Dependent variable
controlled variable(s)
Direct proportional/ relationship
Inverse proportional/ relationship
Avogadro's Law
Boyle's Law
Charles' Law
Gay-Lussac's Law (Amontons' Law)
Ideal gas law
Constant

Knowledge:

Students know:

Behavior of gases is determined by the movement and interactions of the particles.
Relationships among the variables (pressure, volume, temperature, number of particles) can be used to predict the changes to a gaseous system.
The movement and interactions of gas particles within a system and the type of sytem determine the behavior of gases.
Relationships among the variables (pressure, volume, temperature, number of particles) can be used to predict the changes to a gaseous system.

Skills:

Students are able to:

Plan an investigation that describes experimental procedure, including how data will be collected, number of trials, experimental setup, and equipment required.
Conduct an investigation to collect and record data that can be used to describe the relationship between the measureable properties of a substance and the motion of the particles of the substance.
Analyze recorded data to explain the behavior of ideal gases in terms of pressure, volume, temperature, and number of particles.
Identify relevant components in mathematical representations of the gas laws.
Analyze data using tools, technologies, and/ or models (e.g., computational, mathematical) in order to make valid and reliable scientific claims.
Use mathematical representations to determine the value of any relevant components in mathematical representations of the gas laws, given the other values.

Understanding:

Students understand that:

Scientists plan and conduct investigations individually and collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence.
Changes in the variables that affect the motion of gas particles can be described and predicted using scientific investigations.
The patterns of interactions between particles at the atomic/ molecular/ particulate level are reflected in the patterns of behavior at the macroscopic scale.
Cause and effect relationships may be used to predict phenomena in natural or designed systems.
Mathematical representations of phenomena are used to support claims and may include calculations, graphs or other pictorial depictions of quantitative information.
Changes in the variables that affect the motion of gas particles can be described and predicted using scientific investigations.
Cause and effect relationships may be used to predict phenomena in natural or designed systems.

AMSTI Resources:

ASIM Module:
Calcium Carbonate Decomposition AP
Boyle's Law
Ideal Gas Law and Molar Volume

7a. & 7b.
Emphasis is placed on the relationships between gas variables in the gas laws.
Mathematical thinking is emphasized over memorization and algorithmic problem-solving.

Local/National Standards:

Primary Learning Objective(s):

Students will investigate and report what happens to a gas when changes are made to variables such as volume, temperature and gravity of the gas and how it all relates to aeronautics.

Additional Learning Objective(s):

Preparation Information

Total Duration:	61 to 90 Minutes
Materials and Resources:	Pushing the Limits: A NASA Guide to Engines Copy of handouts from NASA Education Guide for each student (4 total handouts) PhET Simulation Lab handout (see attachment below) Calculators
Technology Resources Needed:	Youtube Video Plickers and Plickers cards. (Plickers is a new way to perform quick formative assessments, either during class or at the end of class. The teacher can set up a free plickers account online (www.plickers.com). When the account is set up, the teacher can enter each class, print plickers cards and create assessment questions. The plickers cards are printed off and given to each student as the students' way of giving their answer. The teacher uses his or her cell phone to scan the classroom answers for a quick formative assessment of the students' understanding.) PhET Gas Laws Simulation Access to computer lab and/or handheld devices for PhET simulation lab (1 device per team)
Background/Preparation:	Create Plickers account (if teacher doesn't have one) and create Plickers formative assessment. Teacher can select how many questions he or she wishes to use for the assessment --The teacher can create a free Plickers account (mentioned above) and can print the Plickers cards from the Plickers website as well. --Once the teacher enters each class and all student names, the teacher can create a folder for each class where the questions will be created and saved. The teacher will simply click on new question and then will create the question and the multiple choice answers for the question (indicating the correct answer). --An example question for a Plickers assessment might be: With Boyle's Law, what kind of relationship exists between pressure and volume? (direct or inverse); With Charles's Law, a gas will expand if heat is what? (added or removed)

Procedures/Activities:

Engage (approximately 5-10 minutes)

Show students the YouTube video (length 3:25) entitled "Skywest Airlines Flight Dives 20,000 Feet In Minutes: 3 People Pass Out" in order to capture the attention of the students. Following the video, engage students in a discussion of what they think made the passengers pass out to lead into the introduction of the gas laws and how they are associated with aeronautics.

Explore (approximately 40 minutes)

Begin by giving each student a copy of the following handouts from the NASA Education Guide Pushing the Envelope: A NASA Guide to Engines: Gas Law Problems - Boyle's Law (pg 29-30); Gas Law Problems - Charles's Law (pg 31-32); Gas Law Problems - Gay Lussac's Law (pg 33-34). With each of the three handouts, introduce the specific gas law and the relationship that it represents between the variables of temperature, volume and pressure. After the students have been introduced to the three gas laws, work through some of the practice problems as a collaborative group and then allow students time to work practice problems in teams. After students have worked as a team, the teacher will use Plickers as a formative assessment to gauge student understanding of the laws and the mathematics associated with the three gas laws prior to moving on to the extension lab for the lesson.

Elaborate (approximately 30-40 minutes)

Place students in teams (2-3 students per team). Each team should receive a copy of the PhET Simulation Lab Handout. Each team should also have access to a computer and/or handheld device in order to access the PhET simulation website. The teacher will read directions from the PhET Simulation Lab Handout before allowing the teams to work on collecting data and completing the lab.

Closing/Culminating Activities

Following completion of lesson, teacher will have students do a 3-2-1 activity of 3 new things that they learned, 2 connections that they were able to make between the lesson material and everyday life/situations, and 1 question or concept they are still unsure about. Students will be asked to volunteer to share responses and teacher will allow collaborative class discussion to close lesson.

Assessment

Assessment Strategies

The teacher will check the students' calculations as the practice problems are worked.

The teacher will use Plickers as a formative assessment of the students' understanding.

--The teacher can create a free Plickers account (mentioned above) and can print the Plickers cards from the Plickers website as well.

--Once the teacher enters each class and all student names, the teacher can create a folder for each class where the questions will be created and saved. The teacher will simply click on new question and then will create the question and the multiple choice answers for the question (indicating the correct answer).

--An example question for a Plickers assessment might be: With Boyle's Law, what kind of relationship exists between pressure and volume? (direct or inverse); With Charles's Law, a gas will expand if heat is what? (added or removed)

The teacher will assess the PhET Simulation Lab Handout to ensure that students correctly understand the correlation of volume, temperature and pressure in terms of the gas laws.

Acceleration:

The Gas Laws Handout (see attachment) and the Air Density Handout (page 61-62 of the NASA Education Guide) may be given out to students in order to allow students to further learn of the real-life application of the gas laws to the field of aeronautics.

Intervention:

Any students who may need extra preparation or assistance will be allowed to do some simple activities that may help them understand the concepts of the gas laws better.

Option 1 Activity: For Boyles's Law, teacher may give student a syringe and marshmallows to demonstrate what happens to volume if pressure is increased or decreased. This activity goes along with YouTube video (What will happen if you put marshmallow in a vacuum)

Option 2 Activity: For Gay-Lussac's Law of Ideal Gases, teacher can use a dish with water in it and votive candles to demonstrate the concept for the student. (activity goes along with YouTube video The SciGuys Science at Home SE2 EP11 Gay-Lussac's Law of Ideal Gases)

Option 3 Activity: Re-visit the PHET simulation used spending more time on the concepts and allowing student more hands-on involvement and activity

**Each activity can be done for remediation and student(s) can be asked to record thoughts and observations in a science notebook as the activities are done so that teacher can gain a better understanding of where student's understanding is and to see if anything is still unclear to the student.

View the Special Education resources for instructional guidance in providing modifications and adaptations for students with significant cognitive disabilities who qualify for the Alabama Alternate Assessment.

ALEX Lesson Plan

Gas Laws in the World of Aeronautics