Week 10: Entropy and Entropy Measurements for Reversible and Irreversible Process

“If someone points out to you that your pet theory of the universe is in disagreement with Maxwell‟s equations - then so much the worse for Maxwell‟s equations. If it is found to be contradicted by observation - well, these experimentalists do bungle things sometimes. But if your theory is found to be against the second law of thermodynamics I can offer you no hope; there is nothing for it but to collapse in deepest humiliation.” - - Sir Arthur Eddington.

In Thermodynamics entropy it is a function of thermodynamic variables of a system, which provides a measure of the unavailable energy for work during a thermodynamic process. A closed system evolves toward a state of maximum entropy. Thus, the fact that the entropy of the universe is steadily increasing, means that its total energy is becoming less and less useful: eventually, this will lead to the `heat death of the Universe‟.

 

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