Specific volume

In thermodynamics, the specific volume of a substance (symbol: $ν$ , nu) is a mass-specific intrinsic property of the substance, defined as the quotient of the substance's volume ( $V$ ) to its mass ( $m$ ). It is the reciprocal of density $ρ$ (rho) and it is also related to the molar volume and molar mass:

\upsilon ={\frac {V}{m}}=\rho ^{-1}={\frac {\tilde {V}}{M}}

The standard unit of specific volume is cubic meters per kilogram (m³/kg), but other units include ft³/lb, ft³/slug, or mL/g.^[1]

Specific volume for an ideal gas is related to the molar gas constant ( $R$ ) and the gas's temperature ( $T$ ), pressure ( $P$ ), and molar mass ( $M$ ) as shown:

Since $PV={nRT}$ and ${\textstyle n={\frac {m}{M}}}$

\upsilon ={\frac {V}{m}}={\frac {RT}{PM}}

^ Moran, Michael (7 December 2010). Fundamentals of Engineering Thermodynamics. Wiley. ISBN 978-0-470-49590-2.