Entropy changes in a thermodynamic process under potential gradients

Dhiraj Sinha

Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 2014, vol. 416, issue C, 676-683

Abstract: Thermal energy applied to particles in conservative vector fields results in an increase in the potential and kinetic energy causing an increase in entropy. However, conservative fields associated with potential energy gradients of the system act in opposition to the kinetic energy gradients reducing the overall accessible states of the system and its entropy. Thus, entropy can be expressed as the ratio of difference between the input energy and potential energy of the system to its temperature. As the input energy represents the changes in Hamiltonian of the system, entropy can also be expressed as the difference in changes of its Hamiltonian and potential energy. Formulation of entropy in terms of the changes in system Hamiltonian and potential energy changes give novel insights on the role of potential fields in determining entropy rate and its impact on order and equilibrium.

Keywords: Thermodynamics; Entropy; Potential gradient; Conservative field (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:phsmap:v:416:y:2014:i:c:p:676-683

DOI: 10.1016/j.physa.2014.09.022

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