<P> The molecules of a gas or liquid rarely experience perfectly elastic collisions because kinetic energy is exchanged between the molecules ' translational motion and their internal degrees of freedom with each collision . At any one instant , half the collisions are -- to a varying extent -- inelastic ( the pair possesses less kinetic energy after the collision than before ) , and half could be described as `` super-elastic '' ( possessing more kinetic energy after the collision than before ) . Averaged across an entire sample , molecular collisions are elastic . </P>
<P> The molecules of a gas or liquid rarely experience perfectly elastic collisions because kinetic energy is exchanged between the molecules ' translational motion and their internal degrees of freedom with each collision . At any one instant , half the collisions are -- to a varying extent -- inelastic ( the pair possesses less kinetic energy after the collision than before ) , and half could be described as `` super-elastic '' ( possessing more kinetic energy after the collision than before ) . Averaged across an entire sample , molecular collisions are elastic . </P>
where does lost energy go in inelastic collisions
where does lost energy go in inelastic collisions
molecules of a gas or liquid
molecules of a gas or liquid