Content up to MIDTERM Flashcards
What is a macrostate?
Describes a system at the macroscopic level
What is a microstate?
Describes a system at a microscopic level
What is the number of microstates required to provide a macrostate?
Avogadro’s Number 6 x 10^23
the number of molecules in one mole of a substance
What is a closed system?
Exchanges energy but not matter
What is an open system?
Exchanges energy and matter
What is an extensive variable?
Depend on the size of the system (internal energy and volume)
What is an intensive variable?
Are independent of the size of the system (T and P)
What is the Zeroth Law?
If two systems are in thermal equilibrium with a third system then they are in equilibrium with each other
There is a single property (temperature) that serves to indicate whether systems are in thermal equilibrium.
What does a reversible pr quasistatic process mean?
These idealised processes take place infinitely slowly in such a way that the system is at equilibrium at every stage
What is the First Law?
When a system undergoes a change of state, the sum of the different energy changes is independent of the manner of the transformation.
It depends only on the initial and final states of the system.
U is a state function
What does U being a state function mean for a process?
The change in energy going from A to B is independent of the path taken
What is the equation for change in energy (first law equation)?
dU = dQ + dW
What is the differential of work done by expansion?
-PdV
P is external pressure and V is volume
What is the differential of work done by extension?
Fdl
(F is tension and dl is change in length
What are Ideal Gas assumptions?
- The particles do not take up any volume
- The particles do not interact (except through perfectly elastic collisions)
The interaction energy of two particles in an ideal gas is zero regardless of their separation
When is the interaction energy of two particles not zero?
At high pressures because all substances experience Van der Waals attractive interactions
What happens in an adiabatic expansion?
No heat enters the system but work is done, dQ = 0
What happens in an isothermal expansion?
The temperature remains constant, dU = 0
What work is done if P remains constant during a volume change?
dW = -PdV
How many degrees of freedom do vibrations contribute?
Two because there is potential and kinetic energy
How many degrees of freedom does a monatomic molecule have?
3 (all translational)
How many degrees of freedom does a diatomic molecule have?
6 (3 translational, 2 rotational and 1 vibrational)
What is the classical equipartition theorem?
States that each degree of freedom contributes 1/2 k to the heat capacity Cv
For a real gas what is the internal energy U a function of?
Volume and temperature
dU = dU/dT dt + dU/dV dV
What is the relationship between Cv and Cp for an ideal gas?
Cp - Cv = nR
(1 mol of ideal gas, the difference in the heat capacities is simply R
What does a heat engine dp?
Absorbs heat Qh from a hot reservoir at temperature Th and coverts part of it to work W and discards heat Qc to a cold reservoir (heat sink) at Tc
What is the Second Law?
arrow of time
Heat cannot by itself pass from a colder to a hotter body
OR
The entropy of the universe approaches a maximum
(identifies which processes are accessible by way of a spontaneous change)
What is Entropy, S?
A state function which increases during a spontaneous change.
When does the entropy of an isolated system increase?
During a spontaneous change (dS > 0)
There are no physical processes which lead to a decrease in entropy
What kind of processes generate entropy (disorder)?
Irreversible processes
therefore they occur spontaneously