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thermodynamics


Definition of thermodynamics

noun

[treated as singular]
  • the branch of physical science that deals with the relations between heat and other forms of energy (such as mechanical, electrical, or chemical energy), and, by extension, of the relationships between all forms of energy.

The first law of thermodynamics states the equivalence of heat and work and reaffirms the principle of conservation of energy. The second law states that heat does not of itself pass from a cooler to a hotter body. Another, equivalent, formulation of the second law is that the entropy of a closed system can only increase. The third law (also called Nernst’s heat theorem) states that it is impossible to reduce the temperature of a system to absolute zero in a finite number of operations

Derivatives

thermodynamic

adjective

thermodynamical

adjective

thermodynamically

adverb

thermodynamicist

Pronunciation: /-sɪst/

noun

thermodynamics in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of thermodynamics in the US English dictionary