The Concept And Applications Of Thermodynamics
Out of all the important concepts of science in the life of human beings, thermodynamics ranks the highest. It is through this invention that so many appliances have been made to make the life easy and comfortable. The idea of thermodynamics traces its origin to the universe itself. The world, as it is known, also operates on the principle of thermodynamics to ensure that the temperatures are kept within the recommended levels. Thermodynamics can only end when the universe suddenly comes to an end and all the energy fades away into infinity.
Generally, thermodynamics is all about energy. It revolves around the usage and the transformation of energy. More often, thermodynamics entails using the heat energy to perform work, for instance, the automobile engines and the refrigeraton. The knowledge of thermodynamics will enable one to appreciate the importance of energy in moving about things such as air plane, bicycle and electricity generators.
The word ‘thermodynamics’ has a Greek origin. ‘Thermo’ has everything to do with heat while ‘dynamics’ means movement. Therefore, the term means heat that has been occasioned by movement, well in the simplest of the layman’s terms. The concept is all about converting heat into power.
The natural world is surrounded with so many thermodynamics systems. From the sun to the huge masses of air which move around the surfaces of the earth, the examples are endless. It is the endless transformation of heat that causes the movement and the swirling. Energy takes various forms. Nobody can however create nor destroy energy. This forms the basis of thermodynamics. In most of the thermodynamic systems, both the energy and the matter change their forms. For instance, in the formation of rain, the water droplets in the clouds evaporate into the air; they change from liquid to gaseous state. The vapor then condenses back to water when it finally reaches the cooler parts of the atmosphere. In the long run, the quantity of moisture will gain enough weight to collect into water and eventually fall back to the earth surface as rain.
From the observation of most scientists, energy tends to flow in a certain direction, another basis of thermodynamics. For example, heat will always flows from a high to a low temperature region. The air blows along a pressure gradient. There are also those types of heat which are often created by the natural forces. The wind molecules move towards the water surface due to the presence of buoyancy forces which forces them upwards. The water droplets will always fall from the atmosphere due to the presence of gravitational force which tends to pull them towards the ground.
Those who have not even a single piece of energy also have no temperature at all. This reasoning is the brainchild of the concept of absolute zero temperature in thermodynamics. It is not possible for any living organism to achieve a zero state of energy. This is because there is basic minimum energy requirement that is needed to support basic body functions even when the organism is at rest.
The most intelligent scientists have over the time been able to take advantage of energy in its natural forms to come up with some of the very interesting appliances. Thermodynamics systems have been used to find meaningful ways of harnessing the natural energy into forms that can be used in other activities. Heat is normally used to heat the water to make it lighter and thus move up the turbines. The concept has been applied in the manufacturing of machines including lawn mower and in propelling aero planes as well as moving cars.
It is through thermodynamics that an engineer can know the right amount of heat necessary for moving a car or performing a certain piece of task. Furthermore, the concept can also be used to determine how efficient a machine is utilizing its energy. This is important especially when there is need to ensure that the machines are operating at the most cost friendly mode. Friction often tends to make work difficult to accomplish. Furthermore, the amount of energy spent in moving a machine or objects whose joints have not doubled is often double what would have been spent had the machine been properly maintained.
In the world of science, ‘cold’ simply means the absence of heat. Otherwise no object can be termed as cold. In as much as it is sensory, it does not exist in physical terms. When one decides to cool a cup of coffee using an ice cube, the heat actually moves from coffee to the ice cube thus lowers the temperature. In the long run, the temperature attained will be somewhere between the temperature of the coffee and the ice cube. The differing chemical properties also have a say on the manner in which the two substances interact. The various chemical properties influence the mode of interaction of the two substances. There is a high level of interaction between the chemical components of coffee and those of the ice cube. The coffee molecules lose heat due to the expenditure of kinetic energy in them.
The cooling appliances such as the refrigerators and the air conditioners also use heat. However, the only difference is that they have a reverse process through which heat is generated. Instead, they operate by losing heat. In the refrigerated, heat is pulled from the inner compartment. The inner compartment is where foods and other perishable items are stored. From here, the heat is transferred to the outside regions. This is the accurate explanation as to warm temperature at the back of a refrigerator.
There is a condenser inside the refrigerator where the heat from the refrigerated compartment flows. The evaporator has a gas which acts as a refrigerant. The gas, mostly ammonia, readily liquefies. From the evaporator, the gas is transferred to a pipe at a very minimal force thus causing a cooling effect in the process of evaporation. The refrigerant is then taken by the pipe to the condenser which then pumps it at a very high pressure. The condenser that is found behind the refrigerator contains long pipes to liquefy the gas. The movement of the gas through the condenser makes it to be heated and eventually disappears into the atmosphere.
The operation of the air conditioner is more or less the same. The heated air in the room will flow into the evaporator. Inside the refrigerator, there is a compressor which helps in the circulation of the refrigerator into the condenser. A fan at the back of the refrigerator helps in the absorption of hot hair from room and cools it through the condenser. Another fan removes heat from the condenser to the surrounding. The rear of the air conditioner is normally hot due to the fact that it moves heat from the area in order to be cooled. Unfortunately, the air conditioner has some negative effects to the environment and man. For instance, the ambient sound causes noise pollution. The conditioner also dries the skin and the mucous membrane. There is also a possibility of respiratory disease being transmitted by the air circulation.
It is important to reiterate the fact that heat can only be transferred from one place to the other whenever there is a difference in temperature between the two points. The moment two systems have the same level of thermal energy then no heat transfer can take place whatsoever. In the thermodynamic system, heat can be transferred either by conduction, convection or radiation.
Conduction occurs after a successive collision of the molecules. It is the method of heat transfer in solid objects. The molecules in solids are normally packed in close proximity and it is therefore easier for the heat to be transferred. Therefore, the moment a particular end of an iron rod has been heated, the other side will attain the same hot temperature through conduction. Liquid metals are lesser conductors as compared to the compact metals. This is because of the loose molecules in the molten metals. The process of conduction is normally a very silent one. However, there is massive transfer of thermal kinetic energy from one end of the object to the other. With time, the secret can no longer be kept since the object eventually acquires heat all over its surface. Scientifically speaking, there is a certain amount of energy which is usually lost as heat is transferred in the molecules.
Convection is the process of heat transfer in fluids. In the world of physics, the term ‘fluid’ is used to refer to both liquids and gases. The logic has been attributed to anything that has the ability to flow. The process of convection just takes place naturally; hot air rises while the cooler ones fall to fill up the place left by the rising hot air. The heated is lighter due to the low density it acquires in the process of heating.
However, there are also those instances when forced convection can be made to happen inside a natural system. Radiation is mostly associated with the process by which the heat from the sun reaches the surface of the earth. The concept explains why the upper section of the atmosphere is usually colder than the lower regions. The heat by radiation does not only revolve around the sun. There are so many other phenomena which take place as a result of radiation. The bulbs give out light due to the presence of radiation. Most of the heat is normally lost in the infrared rays. The fluorescent bulb works by converting the excess heat into light.
The thermostat in iron boxes and flasks also applies the same principle of thermodynamics iron clothes and keep the liquid contents at the desired temperature conditions respectively. The thermo start in the two gadgets keep joining and breaking the circuit depending on the temperature extremes of the moment. The electric energy is often converted to heat energy and consequently used to iron the clothes and keep the liquid warm.
The application of thermodynamics in Biological Science is the quantitative study of the energy transductions. It happens in or between the structures, living organisms, and cells function of the chemical processes underlying these transductions. At present, biological thermodynamics concerns itself with the study of internal biochemical dynamics. The examples are protein stability, ATP hydrolysis, DNA binding, membrane diffusion, enzyme kinetics and other essential energy controlled ways.
The amount of energy capable of doing work during a chemical reaction can be measured in quantity in terms of thermo dynamical order. The basic source of energy for living organisms is the sun. Sunlight is directly needed for some living organisms like plants while other organisms similar to humans who acquire energy from the sun indirectly. Some examples are there that some bacteria can thrive in harsh environments same as in Antarctica the blue-green algae below the thick layer of ice in lake is the evidence. It doesn’t matter what the type of living species, all living organisms must capture, transduce, store, and use thermal energy for living. The concept of cryogenics the branch of low temperature thermodynamics looks at the behavior and production of materials at minimal temperatures. For a gas to be cryogenic, it has to be liquefied below -150 degrees Celsius. Some of the most common cryogenic fluids include Helium, Hydrogen, Neon and Nitrogen.
In conclusion, the concept of thermodynamics is one which can be applied in a wide variety of fields. It has contributed immensely to the sector of electronics technology. Thanks to the invention of the refrigerator, it is now possible to preserve food for several days without the fear of losing them. The air conditioner has made it possible for people to regulate the temperatures of the rooms, regardless of the outside weather conditions. There are some forms of energy which were previously idle but have since been put into some good use through the invention of the thermodynamics. The iron boxes and the flasks also owe their existence to thermodynamics. With the constant innovation in the world, it is optimistic to believe that humanity is yet to see the best of thermodynamics.
