Irreversible thermodynamics of thermoelectric devices: from local framework to global description

Coupled heat devices in linear irreversible thermodynamics.

Full analytical models of heat engines and refrigerators in linear irreversible thermodynamics can be defined by means of a chain of coupled heat devices. In this way it is possible to derive results and techniques of finite-time thermodynamics, like endoreversible efficiencies and the usual models of irreversible heat devices, in terms of an endoreversible energy converter plus a heat leak bet...

Irreversible Thermodynamics

There are alternative sets of postulates which yield entirely equivalent results for several important theories. In such cases the choice of a particular set of postulates may be based upon mathematical simplicity, close relationship to experiments or to the nature of the theory, or merely personal taste. While the postulate of conservation of energy is usually presented in similar form for the...

Basics of Irreversible Thermodynamics

From Local to Global Consistency* from Local to Global Consistency*

In reasoning tasks involving the maintenance of consistent databases (so called "constraint net­ works") it is customary to enforce local consistency conditions in order to simplify the construc­ tion of a globally coherent model of the data. In this paper we present a relationship between the sizes of the variables' domains and the level of local consistency sufficient to ensure global con­ si...

Weakly Nonlocal Irreversible Thermodynamics

Weakly nonlocal thermodynamic theories are critically revisited. A relocalized, irreversible thermodynamic theory of nonlocal phenomena is given, based on a modified form of the entropy current and new kind of internal variables, the so called current multipliers. The treatment is restricted to deal with nonlocality connected to dynamic thermodynamic variables. Several classical equations are d...