All Problems

Transport Phenomena

Problem 2.222

Let \(\alpha d t\) be the probability of a gas molecule experiencing a collision during the time interval \(d t ; \alpha\) is a constant. Find: (a) the probability of a molecule experiencing no collisions during the time interval \(t\) (b) the mean time interval between successive collisions.

Reveal Answer
 (a) P=eαt (b) t=1/α\text { (a) } P=\mathrm{e}^{-\alpha t} \text { (b) }\langle t\rangle=1 / \alpha