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Enthalpy (/ ˈ ɛ n θ əl p i / ⓘ) is the sum of a thermodynamic system's internal energy and the product of its pressure and volume. [1] It is a state function in thermodynamics used in many measurements in chemical, biological, and physical systems at a constant external pressure, which is conveniently provided by the large ambient atmosphere.
Enthalpy and isochoric specific heat capacity are very useful mathematical constructs, since when analyzing a process in an open system, the situation of zero work occurs when the fluid flows at constant pressure. In an open system, enthalpy is the quantity which is useful to use to keep track of energy content of the fluid.
The pressure acts as a generalized force – pressure differences force a change in volume, and their product is the energy lost by the system due to mechanical work. Pressure is the driving force, volume is the associated displacement, and the two form a pair of conjugate variables. The above holds true only for non-viscous fluids.
In an isenthalpic process, system enthalpy (H) is constant. In the case of free expansion for an ideal gas, there are no molecular interactions, and the temperature remains constant. For real gasses, the molecules do interact via attraction or repulsion depending on temperature and pressure, and heating or cooling does occur.
In physics and chemistry, an equation of state is a thermodynamic equation relating state variables, which describe the state of matter under a given set of physical conditions, such as pressure, volume, temperature, or internal energy.
Entropy cannot be measured directly. The change in entropy with respect to pressure at a constant temperature is the same as the negative change in specific volume with respect to temperature at a constant pressure, for a simple compressible system. Maxwell relations in thermodynamics are often used to derive thermodynamic relations. [2]
An isochoric thermodynamic quasi-static process is characterized by constant volume, i.e., ΔV = 0. The process does no pressure-volume work, since such work is defined by =, where P is pressure. The sign convention is such that positive work is performed by the system on the environment.
The law states that the total enthalpy change during the complete course of a chemical reaction is independent of the sequence of steps taken. [2] [3] Hess's law is now understood as an expression of the fact that the enthalpy of a chemical process is independent of the path taken from the initial to the final state (i.e. enthalpy is a state ...