Railroad tracks are made from segments L = 65 m long at T = 20° C. When the tracks are laid, the engineers leave gaps of width l between adjacent segments to allow for thermal expansion. The coefficient of linear expansion is α = 12 × 10-6 °C-1 and engineers design the tracks to withstand temperatures of Tc = 39.5 degrees. A) Enter an expression, in terms of given variables, for the minimum gap distance l the engineers must leave for a track rated at temperature Tc. l= B)What is the minimum gap distance in meters? C) Suppose the engineers forgot to add the gaps at the beginning of 15 segments. How much longer, in meters, would the track be at Tc?

Principles of Physics: A Calculus-Based Text
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Author:Raymond A. Serway, John W. Jewett
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Chapter17: Energy In Thermal Processes: The First Law Of Thermodynamics
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Railroad tracks are made from segments L = 65 m long at T = 20° C. When the tracks are laid, the engineers leave gaps of width l between adjacent segments to allow for thermal expansion. The coefficient of linear expansion is α = 12 × 10-6 °C-1 and engineers design the tracks to withstand temperatures of Tc = 39.5 degrees.

A) Enter an expression, in terms of given variables, for the minimum gap distance l the engineers must leave for a track rated at temperature Tc.

l=

B)What is the minimum gap distance in meters?

C)

Suppose the engineers forgot to add the gaps at the beginning of 15 segments. How much longer, in meters, would the track be at Tc?
 
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