Second law of thermodynamics and entropy
Segunda ley de la termodinámica y entropía
- Date
- 1850-1865 · confidence high
- Place
- Zurich, Switzerland
- Credited to
- Rudolf Clausius; William Thomson (Kelvin)
- People
- 👤 Rudolf Clausius1822–1888👤 William Thomson1825–1907
- Field
- Matter & energy
What was discovered
Heat does not spontaneously pass from a cold body to a hot one; Clausius defines entropy (1865) and states that the entropy of the universe tends towards a maximum. It introduces the arrow of time into physics.
Kelvin gave his statement in Glasgow in 1851; Clausius coined 'entropy' in 1865 in Zurich.
What it led to
- Boltzmann's statistical mechanics
- Heat death of the universe and cosmology
- Information theory (Shannon)
- Thermodynamics of black holes
Built on
- Carnot cycle and maximum efficiency of heat engines1824
- Absolute temperature scale (Kelvin)1848
- First law (of thermodynamics)
- Kelvin's absolute scale
Made possible
- Kelvin equation1871
- Refrigeration and gas liquefaction
- Exergy analysis of industrial processes