Periodic Table of Elements

Charles's law

Charles's law states that, at constant presuure, the volume, V, of a given mass of gas is directly proportional to the absolute temperature.

This directly proportional relationship can be written as: V T or V T = k
where:
V is the volume of the gas.
T is the temperature of the gas (measured in Kelvin).
k is a constant.

Because the formula is equal to a constant, Charles's law can be rewritten as: V1 T1 = V2 T2

The law was named after scientist Jacques Charles, who formulated the original law in his unpublished work from the 1780s.

Example:
A gas with a volume of 2 liters at 100 K is heated to 200 K. What is the new volume with no change in pressure?

V1 T1 = V2 T2

V2 = V1 x T2 T1 = 3liters x 200K 100K = 6liters

Charles's law is based upon absolute temperature. The absolute temperature is calculated by adding 273 to the temperature in Celsius scale. 10°C is equiavalent to 283 K.

T = 10°C + 273 = 283K