| The scope of Thermodynamics. |
| Almost all chemical and biological processes involve an interchange of heat and other forms of energy such as pressure-volume work, photons and particles between different parts of the system (a region under consideration with a boundary) as well as with the surroundings. These processes critically depend on temperature. |
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For example, the activities associated with “life” are nearly restricted to the temperature range of 0o C to 100o C. A quantitative knowledge of these exchanges of heat and work at various temperatures allows us to construct various thermodynamic functions such as energy, entropy and free energy. |
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| These functions in turn allow us to estimate how much useful work can be obtained in a chemical or biochemical process or what will be the concentration of all the species in a mixture (reactants, products and the solvents) when a new equilibrium is established. Thermodynamics plays an important role in our metabolism and as well as during drug action in our body. |
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