Give one example from everyday life for each of the four laws of thermodynamics

Question

Give one example from everyday life for each of the four laws of thermodynamics demonstrating how each law affects common occurrences. Be specific in your discussion.

Explanation / Answer

Zeroth law of thermodynamics: If two systems are in thermal equilibrium with a third system, they must be in thermal equilibrium with each other. This law helps define the notion of temperature. For example the length of a mercury column (object B) may be used as a measure to compare the temperatures of the two other objects. 1st Law of Thermodynamics: Hold a piece of ice in your hand until it melts Solution A System ? You Surroundings ? Ice + the rest of the universe q < 0 ? Heat flows out of the system (you) into the ice. Solution B System ? Ice Surroundings ? You + the rest of the universe q > 0 ? Heat flows into the system (ice) from you. The Second Law of Thermodynamics: When it comes to doing useful work like running or powering a car, highly concentrated energy is easier to use and more efficient than low concentrations of energy. Foods like carbohydrates and fats, and liquid fuels like gasoline (petrol for some of you), have highly concentrated potential energy stored in their chemical bonds. They have a lot of energy in a fairly small space and it is efficient for us to convert that concentrated energy into useful energy to keep our bodies and our machines going. Third Law of Thermodynamics: The Third Law of Thermodynamics can be visualized by thinking about water. Water in gas form has molecules that can move around very freely. Water vapor has very high entropy (randomness). As the gas cools, it becomes liquid. The liquid water molecules can still move around, but not as freely. They have lost some entropy. When the water cools further, it becomes solid ice. The solid water molecules can no longer move freely, but can only vibrate within the ice crystals. The entropy is now very low. As the water is cooled more, closer and closer to absolute zero, the vibration of the molecules diminishes. If the solid water reached absolute zero, all molecular motion would stop completely. At this point, the water would have no entropy (randomness) at all.

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