In physics, thermodynamics (from the Greek θερμ-<θερμότης, therme, meaning "heat"[1] and δυναμις, dynamis, meaning "power") is the study of the conversion of energy into work and heat and its relation to macroscopic variables such as temperature, volume and pressure. Its progenitor, based on statistical predictions of the collective motion of particles from their microscopic behavior, is the field of statistical thermodynamics (or statistical mechanics), a branch of statistical physics.[2][3][4] Historically, thermodynamics developed out of need to increase the efficiency of early steam engines.[5]
Typical thermodynamic system, showing input from a heat source (boiler) on the left and output to a heat sink (condenser) on the right. Work is extracted, in this case by a series of pistons.
|
Press & Sun-Bulletin
These are fundamental facts of physics, studied in the subfield of thermodynamics , which means, roughly, action related to temperature. ...
and more »
