Talk:Thermodynamic process

Physics High‑importance

	Physics portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Physics, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Physics on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.PhysicsWikipedia:WikiProject PhysicsTemplate:WikiProject Physicsphysics
High	This article has been rated as High-importance on the project's importance scale.

Systems: Systems theory High‑importance

	Systems science portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Systems, which collaborates on articles related to systems and systems science.SystemsWikipedia:WikiProject SystemsTemplate:WikiProject SystemsSystems
High	This article has been rated as High-importance on the project's importance scale.
	This article is within the field of Systems theory.

Text and/or other creative content from this version of Thermodynamic process path was copied or moved into Thermodynamic process with this edit on 19 July 2020. The former page's history now serves to provide attribution for that content in the latter page, and it must not be deleted as long as the latter page exists.

new edits

The new edits overwrite what was an account of Planck's classification cited by Guggenheim. So that account was not uncited, though the edit cover note complained of lack of citation. The term 'unrealistic' is not used by those sources and is an unnecessary editorial interpolation. It seems the new edit was made without consultation of the cited sources. The further comments are gratuitous uncited editorial opinion and do not reflect what the cited sources Planck and Guggenheim say.Chjoaygame (talk) 01:15, 21 March 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Where is this cite? And could you p l e a s e begin to use proper section headings? Thanks. Prokaryotes (talk) 11:07, 21 March 2014 (UTC)[reply]

In the lead of the section:

Main classes of process

According to Planck, one may think of three main classes of thermodynamic process: natural, fictively reversible, and impossible or unnatural.<Guggenheim, E.A. (1949/1967). Thermodynamics. An Advanced Treatment for Chemists and Physicists, fifth revised edition, North-Holland, Amsterdam, p. 12.>Chjoaygame (talk) 16:15, 21 March 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Not all types of natural processes are described in the article

A natural process does not have to be only as described in the article applying to multiple interacting systems, namely "For thermodynamics, a natural process is a transfer between systems that increases the sum of their entropies, and is irreversible." A natural thermodynamic process can occur within a single system because entropy can increase even when there is merely a redistribution of internal energy and/or some conversion of internal energy to a different form of such. Examples are: (a) the redistribution of thermal energy in a sealed perfectly insulated cylinder of gas which started from a state of unequal temperatures, (b) a chemical reaction including fire, (c) phase change such as melting, condensation or evaporation, (d) the equal conversion of gravitational potential energy such as is approximated by a meteorite in Space in the shadow of Earth and falling towards Earth, thus converting gravitational potential energy to kinetic energy. All these single processes are thus also examples of the Second Law of Thermodynamics in operation, because entropy increases when there are unbalanced energy potentials, that energy being internal energy in any form, not just kinetic energy. Footnote: This is why the Clausius "hot to cold" statement is really only a corollary of the Second Law of Thermodynamics which, for heat that is not via radiation, only always applies in a horizontal plane in the absence of phase change or chemical reactions. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 27.33.9.174 (talk) 23:13, 7 January 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Real-World Applications of Thermodynamic Processes

The actual value of thermodynamic processes are in their application in engineering systems. They provide the base for comprehending and modeling machines that transforms energy into work.

Heat Engines: Cyclic processes such as Otto cycle are applied to internal combustion engines and steam turbines. They demonstrate how fuel energy is transferred into mechanical work.

Refrigeration and Heat Pumps: Processes that control temperature entropy interactions are used to reach cooling or heating. For example, vapor compression refrigeration cycles depend on isothermal heat, combined with adiabatic compression and expansion.

Compressors and Turbines: Flow processes are essential in machines that work with fluids in motion. Compressors approximate adiabatic compression, while turbines extract work or energy from expanding gases.

It can be inferred, that these applications showcase how thermodynamic processes are significant tools in designing and utilizing everyday technologies. AlaaShaikh (talk) 15:22, 9 September 2025 (UTC)[reply]