Evolution of a Chemical System as a Trajectory in a Phase Space. A Fruitful Picture of the Second Law

Two simple examples are presented for introducing the general phase space of a dynamic system as a tool for picturing the evolution of chemical systems. In such a state space, the family of equilibrium states, referred as the equilibrium manifold, is completely determined through the second law of t...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of chemical education Vol. 78; no. 6; p. 803
Main Authors Lemarchand, Hervé, Jullien, Ludovic
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Easton Division of Chemical Education 01.06.2001
American Chemical Society
Subjects
Chemical reactions
Chemistry
Evolution
Kinetics
Law
Organic chemistry
Science education
Space
Thermodynamics
Physical Chemistry
Theoretical Chemistry
Upper-Division Undergraduate
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:Two simple examples are presented for introducing the general phase space of a dynamic system as a tool for picturing the evolution of chemical systems. In such a state space, the family of equilibrium states, referred as the equilibrium manifold, is completely determined through the second law of thermodynamics. Any system evolution is displayed as a trajectory belonging to a constraint manifold depending on the applied external constraints. In general, the final state of evolution is the intersection between the constraint and the equilibrium manifolds.
ISSN:0021-9584
1938-1328
DOI:10.1021/ed078p803