Can anyone define entropy clearly
can anyone suggest a good book for that to know in depth
2006-09-06 03:53:59 · 11 answers · asked by reddy 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Engineering
Entropy is a measure of how much of the total energy in a closed system is not available to do work... the more ordered a system is, the more work it can do... this is why entropy is often described as a tendency toward disorder.
I agree with the answer earlier pointing you to Isaac Asimov. Though written years ago, entropy hasn't changed and his explanation is excellent. Any statistical mechanics book would cover the topic more formally.
Aloha
2006-09-07 13:20:54 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Mathematically it can be defined as heat absorbed
in an equivalent reversible process divided by the absolute temperature.
Delta S=integral (AtoB) deltaQrev/T
It is a difficult concept. Let us take brand new pack of cards in which cards are arranged serially Ace,king...and so on till 2.Here we say entropy is zero. Once we shuffle the cards the entropy rises. It is a measure of disorder. Another example. Consider a room.In the centre is placed a glass beaker filled with ice. This is the initial state. Room is at 25deg and ice obviously at zero deg.
Now after some time ice melts.It has absorbed heat from the room.Heat transfer from hotter room to colder ice has taken place. Let us say heat absorbed is Qcal. Now we can see entropy increase because Q/(273+25)will always be less than Q/273 difference is the rise in entropy.
2006-09-06 04:41:15 · answer #2 · answered by openpsychy 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
In thermodynamics, entropy, symbolized by S, is a state function of a thermodynamic system defined by the differential quantity dS = dQ / T, where dQ is the amount of heat absorbed in a reversible process in which the system goes from the one state to another, and T is the absolute temperature.[1] Entropy is one of the factors that determines the free energy in the system and appears in the second law of thermodynamics. In terms of statistical mechanics, the entropy describes the number of the possible microscopic configurations of the system. The statistical definition of entropy is generally thought to be the more fundamental definition, from which all other important properties of entropy follow. Although the concept of entropy was originally a thermodynamic construct, it has been adapted in other fields of study, including information theory, psychodynamics, thermoeconomics, and evolution.
If you want more in detail you can visit the site given below.
2006-09-06 05:10:44 · answer #3 · answered by Ranjit F 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Can't give you a very scientific definition but the way I think of it is this: Maximum entropy means the minimisation of potential energy. So, for example, if you throw a ball in the air, it has maximum potential energy at the top of its flight, and minimum entropy. At rest on the ground, it has zero potential energy and maximum entropy. Similarly with a hot and cold body together - as the hot body cools and the cold body warms up (i.e. they move towards equilibrium), potential is minimised and entropy is maximised.
NB it doesn't really have anything to do with order or chaos per se - For example, if you tip a bucket of mixed sediment into a tank of water, it will settle with the heaviest pebbles on the bottom and the lightest silt on top, i.e. it is ordered by size, and this happens *because* entropy is maximised, rather than *in spite* of that fact. Similarly, if you create lots of identical bubbles on the surface of a soapy liquid, they will form a regular hexagonal pattern, because here again, order maximises entropy. Any situation in which it would take more energy to create disorder than to create order means that the maximisation of entropy also maximises order.
2006-09-06 04:03:53 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Hi. Entropy is a characteristic of energy such that all energy tends to flow towards equilibrium, never the other way. I've always enjoyed Isaac Asimov's science essay books as clearly written and easy to understand. They all have 17 chapters (just a side note).
2006-09-06 03:57:01 · answer #5 · answered by Cirric 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Entropy is the tendency of any system to move toward a more chaotic state or less organized state if no outside energy is put into it.
2006-09-06 04:01:14 · answer #6 · answered by Homer H 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Entropy is also defined as "movement from order to disorder"
2006-09-06 03:59:09 · answer #7 · answered by sarge927 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Search for similar questions:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Ajj82YVOtoWSoDsYBzqqtkbsy6IX?qid=20060718082507AABR1Vd
The thermodynamics book I used in mechanical engineering undergrad was by Hartley and Black. This is a great book to learn thermo.
2006-09-06 08:32:18 · answer #8 · answered by goldnwhite 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
at diffrent point f view it has many meanings . in crystalography it measure the order of the system .it is zero in a complete crystal . in chemistry it determines whether a reaction take place or not. if reaction take place intropy increases, otherwise it does not . for better underestandong please stydy thermodynamics and physics: gases.
2006-09-07 19:29:27 · answer #9 · answered by eshaghi_2006 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This has been asked a couple of times recently. Take a look at the answers:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Arjl2PgPXPtaVZTTDXVLDgTsy6IX?qid=20060817223842AAYunAx
2006-09-06 04:01:23 · answer #10 · answered by helene_thygesen 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋