Answer to Question #131821 in General Chemistry for Daejah

Question

Arizona is known to have extreme temperatures during its long summers. Jose purchased a car in Flagstaff and decided to drive down to phoenix to show off his new car to his parents. Before leaving the cool 80-degree weather, and driving down to the 110-degree Phoenix city, he stopped to add air to his tires. He set all of his tires to 41psi and made his way down to phoenix. Before driving off, he received a text message from his mom, to make sure he checks his oil level, clean his mirrors and reduce his tire pressure. Why would his mom advise him to reduce the tire pressure? Your explanation should include before and after diagrams of the tire and gas particles inside, and evidence of support from the figures, principles of gas laws and thermodynamics.

Answer 1

Motorists have to check the pressure in car tires while the tires are cold because the air in the tire gets heated during driving, and since the volume of the tire is constant; that means that the tire pressure goes up as the air inside heats up.Normal tire pressure is usually between 32~40psi(pounds per square inch) when they are cold. So make sure you check your tire pressure after a long stay and usually, you can do it in the early morning.