510.312 Physical Chemistry of Materials I: Thermodynamics

Course Syllabus, 2003

1. Properties of Pure Materials

Fundamental phenomena associated with materials (melting, evaporation, freezing, etc.) and the associated phases in which we may find materials to exist (solid, liquid, gas).

2. Work and Heat

Work and heat are quantifiable expressions of the concept of energy flow into and out of a material.

3. Conservation of Energy

The First Law of Thermodynamics concerns the fact that energy can neither be created or destroyed. We will quantify this concept in terms of work and heat.

4. The Second Law of Thermodynamics

The Second Law controls whether a material is in “equilibrium,” and if not, what happens? We will quantify the concept of equilibrium in terms of the material properties called entropy and free energy.

SPECIAL TOPICS:
(1) Perpetual Motion Machines
(2) Engines/Motors

---- MIDTERM ---

5. Mathematical Relationships between Thermodynamic Quantities

Many unusual and surprising relationships exist between energy, entropy, etc. Some straightforward mathematical tools will tell us how to discover these interconnections.

6. Pure Substances Revisited

The fundamental phenomena associated with single-component substances will be revisited using our new vocabulary of equilibrium and energy.
SPECIAL TOPIC: Water

7. Mixtures and Solutions, Phase Equilbria

So, we’ve discussed single-component materials like water. What happens when we mix materials together? Find out here.
SPECIAL TOPIC: Steel

8. Chemical Reactions, Electrochemistry

The next level of complexity after mixtures involves mixtures of components that can turn into one another through chemical reactions.
SPECIAL TOPIC: Green Tech

9. Statistical Mechanics

To end the course, we will switch gears and look to the microscopic origins quantities like energy and entropy, a view from the vantage point of individual atoms and molecules.
SPECIAL TOPIC: Helium