Dissipation of Heat: Essential Feature of Cyclic Irreversible Processes
Dissipation of Heat: Essential Feature of Cyclic Irreversible Processes
Author(s): Jamil AhmadSubject(s): Social Sciences, Education, Geography, Regional studies, Environmental Geography, Vocational Education, Adult Education, Inclusive Education / Inclusion
Published by: Национално издателство за образование и наука „Аз-буки“
Keywords: reversible process; irreversibility; cyclic process, isothermal expansion; phase change; heat transfer
Summary/Abstract: The article discusses one key characteristic of irreversible processes: in order to bring the system back to its original state following such a process, some energy is inevitably dissipated as heat into the surroundings. Greater dissipation indicates greater irreversibility. In the limit that the amount of energy dissipated approaches zero, the process is said to be reversible. This concept is illustrated by considering isothermal expansion of an ideal gas, free expansion of an ideal gas into vacuum, heat transfer from a hotter object to a colder one, phase change, and chemical reactions.
Journal: Химия. Природните науки в образованието
- Issue Year: 26/2017
- Issue No: 5
- Page Range: 704-710
- Page Count: 7
- Language: English
- Content File-PDF