Question

How are real gases different from ideal gases?

Answer 1

Real gas is the different gases around us. Ideal gas is an imaginary concept developed to enhance our thinking on how gases behave. In reality, no gas is ideal.

Complete answer:
- Ideal gas can be defined as a gas that obeys all gas laws at all conditions of pressure and temperature. Ideal gases do not condense. They also do not have a triple point. Ideal gases have mass and velocity.
- Real gases are defined as the gases that do not obey gas laws at all standard pressure and temperature. Real gases condense when cooled to their boiling point. They have velocity, mass and volume.
- In an ideal gas, the molecules collide with each other elastically while in case of real gas, molecules collide with each other inelastically.
- In an ideal gas, the volume occupied by the molecules is negligible as compared to the total volume. In case of a real gas, the volume occupied by molecules is not negligible as compared to total volume.
- Ideal gases do not show intermolecular forces of attraction. On the other hand, real gases possess either attractive or repulsive forces between the particles.
- Ideal gases have high pressure while real gases have a pressure correction term in its equation and the actual pressure is less than ideal gas.

Note:
One can easily get confused between ideal gas and real gas when solving a numerical. It is important to note that if nothing is said about the gas, it is considered to be ideal.