1. Tardigrade
  2. Question
  3. Physics
  4. The average energy per molecule of a triatomic gas at room temperature T is

Question Error Report

Thank you for reporting, we will resolve it shortly

Back to Question

Q. The average energy per molecule of a triatomic gas at room temperature $T$ is

J & K CETJ & K CET 2016Kinetic Theory

Solution:

A triatomic (non-linear) gas molecule has $6$ degrees of freedom ($3$ translational, $3$ rotational and no vibrational) at room temperature.
According to the law of equipartition of energy, the average energy per molecule of a triatomic gas at room temperature $T$ is
$\bar{E} = \frac{1}{2}fkT = \frac{1}{6} 6kT = 3kT$