Chapter 20, Problem 27A

To determine

To explain: Whether a vacuum cleaner pick up dust from the rug on the moon.

Answer to Problem 27A

The vacuum cleaner will not work on the moon and hence it would not pick up dust from the rug on the moon.

Explanation of Solution

Introduction:

The principle of vacuum pump is the difference in the pressure of the medium. If a pump has low pressure inside the vacuum cleaner, the air particles from the surroundings try to enter into the pump.

A vacuum cleaner is a high speed fan, which operates on earth. By reducing the pressure in the machine, the dust particles present in the surroundings tries to push the dust inside the machine. This happens easily because the atmospheric pressure is present on the earth.

The vacuum cleaner will not work on the moon, since there is no atmospheric pressure present on the moon to push the dust inside the vacuum cleaner.