What Does thermodynamics Mean
Before getting to know in depth the meaning of the word that concerns us now, thermodynamics, it is important to highlight that the etymological origin of it is found in Latin. More specifically, we can underline the fact that it is made up of the union of three clearly differentiated parts: the word thermos which is defined as “hot”, the noun dynamos which is equivalent to “force” or “power”, and the suffix - ico which can be determined to mean "relative to."
The branch of physics that focuses on the study of the links between heat and other varieties of energy is identified by the name of thermodynamics . Therefore, it analyzes the macroscopic effects of changes in temperature, pressure, density, mass and volume in each system.
It is important to emphasize that there are a series of basic concepts that it is essential to know beforehand in order to understand how the thermodynamic process is. In this sense, one of them is what is called the equilibrium state, which can be defined as the dynamic process that takes place in a system when both the volume and the temperature and pressure do not change.
In the same way there is what is known by the name of internal energy of the system. This is understood as the sum of what are the energies of each and every one of the particles that make up it. In this case, it is important to emphasize that these energies only depend on what the temperature is.
The third concept that is essential for us to know before knowing what the thermodynamic process is like is the equation of state. A terminology that comes to express the relationship that exists between what is pressure, temperature and volume.
The basis of thermodynamics is everything that is related to the passage of energy, a phenomenon capable of causing movement in various bodies . The first law of thermodynamics , which is known as the principle of conservation of energy, states that if one system exchanges heat with another, its own internal energy will be transformed. Heat, in this sense, constitutes the energy that a system has to exchange if it needs to compensate for the contrasts that arise when comparing effort and internal energy.
The second law of thermodynamics assumes different restrictions for energy transfers that, in hypothesis, could be carried out if the first law is taken into account. The second principle serves as a regulator of the direction in which thermodynamic processes are carried out and imposes the impossibility that they develop in the opposite direction. It should be noted that this second law is supported by entropy , a physical quantity in charge of measuring the amount of useless energy to generate work.
The third law contemplated by thermodynamics , finally, highlights that it is not possible to achieve a thermal mark that reaches absolute zero through a finite number of physical procedures.
Among the thermodynamic processes, the isothermal (the temperature does not change), the isocoric (the volume does not change), the isobaric (the pressure does not change) and the adiabatic (there is no heat transfer) stand out.