The Ideal Gas Law
An ideal gas is defined as a gas in which all of the particles (atoms and molecules) are far enough apart that they do not exert forces on each other and in which particle collisions are totally elastic (no kinetic energy is lost). The Ideal Gas Law can only be used for ideal gases, and it gives a relationship among the following quantities:
- pressure (which is measured using the unit atmospheres, and which is equal to the force per unit area or force / area),
- volume (which is measured using the unit liters),
- amount of a substance (which is measured in moles or, alternatively, in number of molecules), and
- temperature (which is measured using the unit Kelvins).