1: Introduction to thermodynamic states

thermodynamic tell us …

which states of the system are favored or disfavored

kinetics tell us …

how fast we move from one disfavored state to another favored state

What is a system?

it is what we want to study

What is an environment?

it is everything around our system

What can be exchanged between out system and the environment?

volume, energy, and mass

What are three ways to describe systems?

isolated, open, closed

What is an isolated system?

where no mass or energy can exchange

What is an open system?

where mass and energy can exchange

What is a closed system?

where mass cannot exchange and where energy can exchange

What are 3 ways to describe the walls of a system?

adiabatic, permeable, impermeable

What does adiabatic mean?

the walls DON’T allow energy transfer

What does permeable mean?

the walls allow mass to exchange

What does impermeable mean?

that the walls DON’T allow mass to exchange

What does semipermeable mean?

the walls allow for limited mass to exchange

What does isobaric condition mean?

it has the same pressure (constant)

What does isothermal mean?

it has the same temperature (constant)

what are the 3 fixed possible combinations?

energy/temperature

pressure/volume

number of mole species/chemical potential

What are intensive variables?

do not depend on system size

Are these intensive or extensive variables?

temperature & pressure

What are extensive variables?

depend on the size of the system

Are these intensive or extensive variables?

volume, number of moles, total energy

What is microstate?

specifies number, position, and momentum of all particles in a system

What is macrostate?

an overall description of a system using macroscopic variables

(i.e. P, V, N, T)

What does Gibb’s phase rule tell us?

it tells us how many independent intensive variables we are free to use when defining the macrostate at equilibrium

What is an equation of state?

a mathematical relationship connecting macrostate variables