I am interested in how energy is covered in university
engineering courses as the common fallacious view seems to be that energy flow
can be regarded as an independent phenomenon. The reality is that energy
operation is opposed by friction in many cases. Many know their cars must have
oil to overcome the friction in the engine. But political discussions of energy
treat it as commodity that does (positive) work such as supplying electricity
without acknowledging that friction does negative work.
Thermodynamics is 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.
All the reactions going on in a refrigerator are isothermal
as a constant temperature is maintained in it by a system using electrical
energy. So isothermal is a selective term The melting of ice at zero degree is an example of a isothermal
process using heat energy from the air. The reaction in a heat pump is an
example of isothermal process using heat energy input from another system.
In thermodynamics
theory, an adiabatic process
is one that occurs without transfer of heat or matter between a thermodynamic
system and its surroundings. An adiabatic
process is one in which no heat is gained or lost by the system.
The first law of thermodynamics with Q=0 shows that all the change in internal
energy is in the form of work done. In the idealized adiabatic process,
energy is transferred to its surroundings only as work. There are no practical
examples of the adiabatic process.
