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Specific volume is the volume occupied by a unit of mass of a material. [1] In many cases, the specific volume is a useful quantity to determine because, as an intensive property, it can be used to determine the complete state of a system in conjunction with another independent intensive variable. The specific volume also allows systems to be ...
Axial cross section of Carnot's heat engine. In this diagram, abgh is a cylindrical vessel, cd is a movable piston, and A and B are constant–temperature bodies. The vessel may be placed in contact with either body or removed from both (as it is here). [1] A Carnot heat engine [2] is a theoretical heat engine that operates on the Carnot cycle.
A Carnot cycle is an ideal thermodynamic cycle proposed by French physicist Sadi Carnot in 1824 and expanded upon by others in the 1830s and 1840s. By Carnot's theorem, it provides an upper limit on the efficiency of any classical thermodynamic engine during the conversion of heat into work, or conversely, the efficiency of a refrigeration system in creating a temperature difference through ...
Thermodynamic cycles may be used to model real devices and systems, typically by making a series of assumptions to reduce the problem to a more manageable form. [2] For example, as shown in the figure, devices such a gas turbine or jet engine can be modeled as a Brayton cycle. The actual device is made up of a series of stages, each of which is ...
The first and second law of thermodynamics are the most fundamental equations of thermodynamics. They may be combined into what is known as fundamental thermodynamic relation which describes all of the changes of thermodynamic state functions of a system of uniform temperature and pressure.
A heat engine is a system that converts heat to usable energy, particularly mechanical energy, which can then be used to do mechanical work. [1] [2] While originally conceived in the context of mechanical energy, the concept of the heat engine has been applied to various other kinds of energy, particularly electrical, since at least the late 19th century.
The path or series of states through which a system passes from an initial equilibrium state to a final equilibrium state [1] and can be viewed graphically on a pressure-volume (P-V), pressure-temperature (P-T), and temperature-entropy (T-s) diagrams. [2] There are an infinite number of possible paths from an initial point to an end point in a ...
Typically in thermodynamics, the set of processes forms a cycle, so that upon completion of the cycle there has been no net change in state of the system; i.e. the device returns to the starting pressure and volume. [citation needed] The figure shows the features of an idealized PV diagram. It shows a series of numbered states (1 through 4).