Rudolf Clausius was a German physicist and mathematician who formulated the second law of thermodynamics and introduced the concept of entropy. His work laid the foundation for our understanding of energy conservation and transformation.
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Clausius is best known for formulating the second law of thermodynamics, which states that the total entropy of an isolated system can never decrease over time.
He introduced the concept of entropy to quantify the amount of disorder or randomness in a system.
Clausius' famous statement 'The energy of the universe is constant; the entropy of the universe tends to a maximum' highlights his contributions to thermodynamics.
He developed the Clausius-Clapeyron equation, which describes phase transitions between two phases of matter.
Clausius' work on thermodynamics helped establish the kinetic theory of gases, connecting macroscopic thermodynamic properties with microscopic molecular behavior.
Review Questions
What is Rudolf Clausius' most significant contribution to thermodynamics?
How did Clausius define entropy?
Explain how Clausius' work relates to the second law of thermodynamics.