Continuum Thermodynamics

This book deals with an important topic in rational continuum physics, thermodynamics. Although slim, it is fairly well self-contained; some basic notions in continuum mechanics, which a well-intentioned reader should but may not be familiar with, are collected in a final appendix.

Modern continuum thermodynamics is a field theory devised to handle a large class of processes that typically are neither spatially homogeneous nor sequences of equilibrium states. The most basic chapter addresses the continuum theory of heat conduction , in which the constitutive laws furnish a mathematical characterization of the macroscopic manifestations of those fluctuations in position and velocity of the microscopic matter constituents that statistical thermodynamics considers collectively. In addition to a nonstandard exposition of the conceptual steps leading to the classical heat equation, the crucial assumption that energy and entropy inflows should be proportional is discussed and a hyperbolic version of that prototypical parabolic PDE is presented. Thermomechanics comes next, a slightly more complex paradigmatic example of a field theory where microscopic and macroscopic manifestations of motion become intertwined. Finally, a virtual power format for thermomechanics is proposed, whose formulation requires that temperature is regarded formally as the time derivative of thermal displacement . It is shown that this format permits an alternative formulation of the theory of heat conduction, and a physical interpretation of the notion of thermal displacement is given.

It is addressed to mathematical modelers – or mathematical modelers to be – of continuous material bodies, be they mathematicians, physicists, or mathematically versed engineers.