Undergraduate Course: Thermodynamics (PHYS09021)
Course Outline
| School |
School of Physics and Astronomy |
College |
College of Science and Engineering |
| Course type |
Standard |
Availability |
Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) |
SCQF Level 09 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Credits |
10 |
| Home subject area |
Undergraduate (School of Physics and Astronomy) |
Other subject area |
None |
| Course website |
None |
|
|
| Course description |
An introduction to equilibrium thermodynamics. The First and Second laws of thermodynamics are introduced, along with the concepts of temperature, internal energy, heat, entropy and the thermodynamic potentials. Applications of thermodynamic concepts to topics such as heat engines, the expansion of gases and changes of phase are considered. The Third Law, and associated properties of entropy, complete the course. |
Course Delivery Information
|
| Delivery period: 2010/11 Semester 1, Available to all students (SV1)
|
WebCT enabled: No |
Quota: None |
| Location |
Activity |
Description |
Weeks |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
| King's Buildings | Lecture | | 1-11 | 10:00 - 10:50 | | | | | | King's Buildings | Lecture | | 1-11 | | | | 10:00 - 10:50 | | | King's Buildings | Tutorial | | 2-11 | 17:10 - 18:00 | or 17:10 - 18:00 | | or 17:10 - 18:00 | |
| First Class |
Week 1, Monday, 10:00 - 10:50, Zone: King's Buildings. JCMB |
| Additional information |
Workshop/tutorial sessions, as arranged. |
|
| Delivery period: 2010/11 Semester 1, Part-year visiting students only (VV1)
|
WebCT enabled: No |
Quota: None |
| Location |
Activity |
Description |
Weeks |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
| King's Buildings | Lecture | | 1-11 | 10:00 - 10:50 | | | | | | King's Buildings | Lecture | | 1-11 | | | | 10:00 - 10:50 | | | King's Buildings | Tutorial | | 2-11 | 17:10 - 18:00 | or 17:10 - 18:00 | | or 17:10 - 18:00 | |
| First Class |
Week 1, Monday, 10:00 - 10:50, Zone: King's Buildings. JCMB |
| Additional information |
Workshop/tutorial sessions, as arranged. |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course it is intended that a student will be able to:
1)State the Zeroth, First, Second and Third Laws of thermodynamics, if appropriate in different but equivalent forms and demonstrate their equivalence
2)Understand all the concepts needed to state the laws of thermodynamics, such as 'thermodynamic equilibrium', 'exact' and 'inexact' differentials and 'reversible' and 'irreversible' processes
3)Use the laws of thermodynamics (particularly the first and second laws) to solve a variety of problems, such as the expansion of gases and the efficiency of heat engines
4)Understand the meaning and significance of state variables in general, and of the variables P; V; T;U; S in particular, especially in the context of a simple fluid, and to manipulate these variables to solve a variety of thermodynamic problems
5)Define the enthalpy H, Helmholtz function F and the Gibbs function G and state their roles in determining equilibrium under different constraints
6)Manipulate (using suitable results from the theory of functions of many variables) a variety of thermodynamic derivatives, including a number of 'material properties' such as heat capacity, thermal expansivity and compressibility, and solve problems in which such derivatives appear
7)Sketch the phase diagram of a simple substance in various representations and understand the concept of an 'equation of state' (as exemplified by the van der Waals' equation for a fluid) and the basic thermodynamics of phase transitions
8)Demonstrate a grasp of the orders of magnitudes of the various central quantities involved |
Assessment Information
Coursework, 10%
Degree Examination, 90%
Visiting Student Variant Assessment
Coursework, 10%
Degree Examination, 90% |
| Please see Visiting Student Prospectus website for Visiting Student Assessment information |
Special Arrangements
| Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser |
Prof Andrew Huxley
Tel: (0131 6)51 7053
Email: a.huxley@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary |
Mrs Linda Grieve
Tel: (0131 6)50 5254
Email: linda.grieve@ed.ac.uk |
|
copyright 2010 The University of Edinburgh -
1 September 2010 6:34 am
|
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