Suppose the partition in Figure 19.9 is designed to slide freely to the left and right. It is positioned in the center so that the container is divided into two equal compartments and clamped in place. Then \(2 N\) particles of a gas are added to the left compartment and \(N\) particles are added to the right compartment. When the clamp on the partition is removed, does the partition move to the right, move to the left, or stay where it is?

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Figure 19.9 (a) A container has gas in one half and vacuum in the other, divided by a partition. (b) When the partition is removed, the gas expands irreversibly into the vacuum. After the expansion is complete, there is an equal likelihood of finding a gas particle any- where in the container. (a) (b) gas vacuum removable partition Partition removed: gas expands irreversibly to fill vacuum.