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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.
A corresponding expression for the difference in specific heat capacities (intensive properties) at constant volume and constant pressure is: = where ρ is the density of the substance under the applicable conditions.
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.
Hess's law states that the change of enthalpy in a chemical reaction is the same regardless of whether the reaction takes place in one step or several steps, provided the initial and final states of the reactants and products are the same. Enthalpy is an extensive property, meaning that its value is proportional to the system size. [4]
The value obtained this way is said to be the molar heat capacity at constant volume (or isochoric) and denoted c V,m, c v,m, c v,m, etc. The value of c V,m is always less than the value of c P,m. This difference is particularly notable in gases where values under constant pressure are typically 30% to 66.7% greater than those at constant ...
For example, when heating an amount of gas in an elastic container, its volume and pressure will both increase, even if the atmospheric pressure outside the container is kept constant. Therefore, the effective heat capacity of the gas, in that situation, will have a value intermediate between its isobaric and isochoric capacities C p ...
If the calorically perfect gas approximation is used, then the ideal gas law may also be expressed as follows = where is the number density of the gas (number of atoms/molecules per unit volume), = / is the (constant) adiabatic index (ratio of specific heats), = is the internal energy per unit mass (the "specific internal energy"), is the ...