Gases
Gases
Gases (/ˈɡæsɪz/; from the Greek word 'gaza', meaning 'empty space') are one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and plasma). A gas has neither a defined shape nor volume, but occupies the entire container in which it is confined.
Etymology
The term "gas" was first used by the early 17th-century Flemish chemist J.B. Van Helmont as a phonetic spelling of his Dutch pronunciation of the Greek word 'chaos'.
Properties
Gases have various properties which we can observe with our senses, including the gas pressure, temperature, mass, and the volume which contains the gas.
- Pressure is the force which the gas exerts on the walls of its container.
- Temperature is a measure of the average kinetic energy of the particles in the gas.
- Mass is the amount of matter in the gas.
- Volume is the space occupied by the gas.
Types of Gases
There are several types of gases, including:
- Noble Gases - These are the elements in group 18 of the periodic table. They are the most stable due to having the maximum number of valence electrons their outer shell can hold. Therefore, they rarely react with other elements.
- Natural Gases - These are naturally occurring mixtures of hydrocarbon gases that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface.
- Greenhouse Gases - These are gases in Earth's atmosphere that trap heat. They let sunlight pass through the atmosphere, but they prevent the heat that the sunlight brings from leaving the atmosphere.
Related Terms
- Gas Laws - These are the scientific laws that describe how gases behave.
- Gas Constant - This is a physical constant which is featured in many fundamental equations in the physical sciences, such as the ideal gas law and the Nernst equation.
- Gas Exchange - This is the process by which oxygen is transported to cells and carbon dioxide is transported from cells.
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Gases
- Wikipedia's article - Gases
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