Thermodynamics is the study of energy and heat. It helps us understand how energy is created or destroyed. We humans can’t see or touch energy, but we can see its effects. We see energy as heat or light, kinetic or potential energy, or sound.
Thermodynamics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of heat, energy, and the physical properties of matter. The principles behind thermodynamics are the same ones that govern the thermodynamics of conventional refrigerators, air conditioners, and other devices.
Thermodynamics is also the study of energy. It looks at how energy is transferred from one form to the other. When energy is transferred, that energy has changed from its original form. The change is caused by heat. Without heat, an object’s temperature would remain the same or increase.
As a basic physics concept, thermodynamics tells us how energy is distributed through matter on the microscopic level. It is the study of energy and its properties in matter and is related to its temperature, pressure, composition, and state.
Thermodynamic Laws
The laws of thermodynamics describe the energy transfer and motion of molecules, atoms, and other matter. One of these laws is called the Second Law. It states that as heat energy is added to a system, it consistently decreases entropy. In other words, the system’s order increases as heat and energy are added to a system.
Thermodynamic Cycles
Thermodynamic cycles are, simply put, cycles that occur in a closed system. Think of a cycle as something that repeats itself, and thermodynamic cycles are exactly that.
Thermodynamic Properties
A thermodynamic property is a physical quantity that describes how energy changes when specific physical systems are in thermal contact. By “energy,” we mean work, heat, or the internal energy of a system. Thermodynamic properties include thermodynamic processes, such as heat engines, refrigerators, and power plants, and composition of matter, such as energy and entropy. In other words, a thermodynamic property is a measurable characteristic of a system that can describe how it responds to changes in internal energy or entropy.
Most physicists say we need a new theory of everything. This theory tries to unify gravity and quantum mechanics, or gravity, and the standard model of particle physics. A theory that uses all the same physics but describes the whole of reality. The quest for a theory of everything is very ambitious.
Thermodynamics is a science that explains how energy can be transformed into different forms. In simple words, thermodynamics describes how much energy is stored in different types of matter.
Thermodynamics can be applied to almost anything. We can easily describe how the arrangement of molecules in a gas differs from a liquid or that the water is in the liquid, not the gas. As we said earlier, a state change is a reversible process, which means the molecules can return to their previous state, but we cannot change the state of something. The molecules in a gas are evenly distributed. Therefore, the mass stays the same. Heat cannot be created or destroyed; similarly, energy cannot be created or destroyed.
It is beyond the scope of this brief writing to go into detail. Still, thermodynamics is used to help scientists explain the various chemical reactions that occur in nature, from how water molecules bond in H2O to how atoms bond in iron and steel to how molecules bond in our bodies. Thermodynamics is a core science upon which chemical, physical, and biological sciences depend and is used in designing new technologies every day.
Both classical and quantum thermodynamics rests on the postulate that the properties of a system can be correctly described only in terms of the properties of the individual parts making up the system. While classical thermodynamics on this premise leads to laws similar to classical mechanics, quantum thermodynamics leads to entirely new theories with radically new results.