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The Boltzmann constant, and therefore entropy, have dimensions of energy divided by temperature, which has a unit of joules per kelvin (J⋅K −1) in the International System of Units (or kg⋅m 2 ⋅s −2 ⋅K −1 in terms of base units). The entropy of a substance is usually given as an intensive property — either entropy per unit mass ...
Thermodynamics. In thermodynamics, entropy is a numerical quantity that shows that many physical processes can go in only one direction in time. For example, cream and coffee can be mixed together, but cannot be "unmixed"; a piece of wood can be burned, but cannot be "unburned". The word 'entropy' has entered popular usage to refer to a lack of ...
The free energy is the portion of any first-law energy that is available to perform thermodynamic work at constant temperature, i.e., work mediated by thermal energy. Free energy is subject to irreversible loss in the course of such work. [1] Since first-law energy is always conserved, it is evident that free energy is an expendable, second-law ...
History of entropy. The concept of entropy developed in response to the observation that a certain amount of functional energy released from combustion reactions is always lost to dissipation or friction and is thus not transformed into useful work. Early heat-powered engines such as Thomas Savery 's (1698), the Newcomen engine (1712) and the ...
Chemical potential. Particle number. In classical thermodynamics, entropy (from Greek τρoπή (tropḗ) 'transformation') is a property of a thermodynamic system that expresses the direction or outcome of spontaneous changes in the system. The term was introduced by Rudolf Clausius in the mid-19th century to explain the relationship of the ...
Extensive properties. An extensive property is a physical quantity whose value is proportional to the size of the system it describes, [8] or to the quantity of matter in the system. For example, the mass of a sample is an extensive quantity; it depends on the amount of substance. The related intensive quantity is the density which is ...
The principle of minimum energy is essentially a restatement of the second law of thermodynamics. It states that for a closed system, with constant external parameters and entropy, the internal energy will decrease and approach a minimum value at equilibrium. External parameters generally means the volume, but may include other parameters which ...
The relation is generally expressed as a microscopic change in internal energy in terms of microscopic changes in entropy, and volume for a closed system in thermal equilibrium in the following way. Here, U is internal energy, T is absolute temperature, S is entropy, P is pressure, and V is volume. This is only one expression of the fundamental ...