Header Ads

Basic Thermodynamic Processes

Thermodynamics is a branch of physics concerned with heat and temperature and their relation to energy and work. It defines macroscopic variables, such as internal energyentropy, and pressure, that partly describe a body of matter orradiation. It states that the behavior of those variables is subject to general constraints, that are common to all materials, beyond the peculiar properties of particular materials.


Basic Thermodynamic Processes :-

1) Isothermal process
                                            When the system undergoes change from one state to the other, but its temperature remains constant, the system is said to have undergone isothermal process. For instance, in our example of hot water in thermos flask, if we remove certain quantity of water from the flask, but keep its temperature constant at 50 degree Celsius, the process is said to be isothermal process.

2) Isochoric process

                                             The process, during which the volume of the system remains constant, is called as isochoric process. Heating of gas in a closed cylinder is an example of isochoric process.

3) Isobaric process

                                         The process during which the pressure of the system remains constant is called as isobaric process. Example: Suppose there is a fuel in piston and cylinder arrangement. When this fuel is burnt the pressure of the gases is generated inside the engine and as more fuel burns more pressure is created. But if the gases are allowed to expand by allowing the piston to move outside, the pressure of the system can be kept constant.

4) Reversible process

                                             In simple words the process which can be revered back completely is called a reversible process. This means that the final properties of the system can be perfectly reversed back to the original properties. In practical situations it is not possible to trace these extremely small changes in extremely small time, hence the reversible process is also an ideal process.

No comments

Powered by Blogger.