text: The process begins with gas under some pressure, , at temperature , confined to one half of a thermally isolated container (see the top part of the drawing at the beginning of this article). The gas occupies an initial volume , mechanically separated from the other part of the container, which has a volume , and is under near zero pressure. The tap (solid line) between the two halves of the container is then suddenly opened, and the gas expands to fill the entire container, which has a total volume of  (see the bottom part of the drawing). A thermometer inserted into the compartment on the left (not shown in the drawing) measures the temperature of the gas before and after the expansion. 
  The system in this experiment consists of both compartments; that is, the entire region occupied by the gas at the end of the experiment. Because this system is thermally isolated, it cannot exchange heat with its surroundings. Also, since the system's total volume is kept constant, the system cannot perform work on its surroundings. As a result, the change in internal energy, , is zero. Internal energy consists of internal kinetic energy (due to the motion of the molecules) and internal potential energy (due to intermolecular forces). When the molecular motion is random, temperature is the measure of the internal kinetic energy. In this case, the internal kinetic energy is called heat. If the chambers have not reached equilibrium, there will be some kinetic energy of flow, which is not detectable by a thermometer (and therefore is not a component of heat). Thus, a change in temperature indicates a change in kinetic energy, and some of this change will not appear as heat until and unless thermal equilibrium is reestablished. When heat is transferred into kinetic energy of flow, this causes a decrease in temperature. 
  In practice, the simple two-chamber free expansion experiment often incorporates a porous plug through which the expanding air must flow to reach the lower pressure chamber. The purpose of this plug is to inhibit directional flow, thereby quickening the reestablishment of thermal equilibrium. 
  Since the total internal energy does not change, the stagnation of flow in the receiving chamber converts kinetic energy of flow back into random motion (heat) so that the temperature climbs to its predicted value.
  If the initial air temperature is low enough that non-ideal gas properties cause condensation, some internal energy is converted into latent heat (an offsetting change in potential energy) in the liquid products. Thus, at low temperatures the Joule expansion process provides information on intermolecular forces.