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Chapter 15: 14Q (page 412)

Question:Suppose a lot of papers are strewn all over the floor; then you stack them neatly. Does this violate the second law of thermodynamics? Explain.

Short Answer

Expert verified

It doesn’t violate the second law of thermodynamics.

Step by step solution

01

Understanding the second law of thermodynamics 

According to the second law of thermodynamics, a particular system’s net entropy rises or remains steady in any natural thermodynamic process.

02

Explaining whether collecting a lot of papers strewn all over the floor violate the second law of thermodynamics 

When many papers strewn all over the floor are collected and stacked neatly, some outside source is used to improve the order of the papers. In this case, energy is provided in completing the process, and in doing so, the person’s entropy becomes more than the entropy of the papers.

Hence, the increase in overall entropy satisfies the second law of thermodynamics.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Question: Entropy is often called the‘time’s arrow’ because it tells us the direction in which natural processes occur. If a movie is run backward, name some processes that you might see that would tell you that time is ‘running backward’.

Question:A gas is allowed to expand (a) adiabatically and (b) isothermally. In each process, does the entropy increase, decrease, or stay the same? Explain.

A heat engine operates between a high temperature of about 600°C and a low temperature of about 300°C. What is the maximum theoretical efficiency for this engine?

(a) \( = 100\% \). (b) \( \approx 66\% \). (c) \( \approx 50\% \). (d) \( \approx 34\% \).

(e) Cannot be determined from the given information.

(III) Rank the following five-card hands in order of increasing probability: (a) four aces and a king; (b) six of hearts, eight of diamonds, queen of clubs, three of hearts, jack of spades; (c) two jacks, two queens, and an ace; and (d) any hand having no two equal-value cards (no pairs, etc.). Discuss your ranking in terms of microstates and macrostates.

A particular car does work at the rate of about\({\bf{7}}{\bf{.0}}\;{\bf{kJ/s}}\)when traveling at a steady\({\bf{21}}{\bf{.8}}\;{\bf{m/s}}\)along a level road. This is the work done against friction. The car can travel 17 km on 1.0 L of gasoline at this speed (about 40 mi/gal). What is the minimum value for\({{\bf{T}}_{\bf{H}}}\)if\({{\bf{T}}_{\bf{L}}}\)is 25°C? The energy available from 1.0 L of gas is\({\bf{3}}{\bf{.2 \times 1}}{{\bf{0}}{\bf{7}}}\;{\bf{J}}\).
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