|
( Second law of thermodynamics)
The second law of thermodynamics is an expression of the universal law of increasing entropy, stating that the entropy of an isolated system which is not in equilibrium will tend to increase over time, approaching a maximum value at equilibrium. The second law traces its origin to French physicist Sadi Carnot's 1824 paper Reflections on the Motive Power of Fire, which presented the view that motive power (work) is due to the fall of caloric (heat) from a hot to cold body (working substance). In simple terms, the second law is an expression of the fact that over time, ignoring the effects of self-gravity, differences in temperature, pressure, and density tend to even out in a physical system that is isolated from the outside world. Entropy is a measure of how far along this evening-out process has progressed. There are many versions of the second law, but they all have the same effect, which is to explain the phenomenon of irreversibility in nature. There are many ways of stating the second law of thermodynamics, but all are equivalent in the sense that each form of the second law logically implies every other form[1]. Thus, the theorems of thermodynamics can be proved using any form of the second law and third law
|
Second law of thermodynamics Subcategories
Second law of thermodynamics Articles
|
| 
