heat
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Fourier solved heat. Or did he?
Thermodynamics began when caloric ended A pivotal event in thermodynamic history occurred when Julius Robert Mayer and James Joule independently overthrew the caloric theory of heat, revealing heat and work as two forms of energy. In 1850 Rudolf Clausius used these findings to correct the single flaw in Sadi Carnot’s 1824 theoretical analysis of the… Continue reading
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Heat Theories: A Brief Overview
To explore the challenges scientists faced in understanding heat, my illustrator Carly Sanker and I created a map (at bottom) outlining the evolution of heat theories, excerpted from my book. The material theories of phlogiston and caloric provided dead-end roads that confused many for many, many years. The mechanical theories eventually won the day in… Continue reading
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But what about heat?
The formulation of the conservation law for mechanical energy had its scientific roots in at least three areas of theoretical mechanics: (1) The principle of conservation of mechanical work… (2) The principle of conservation of vis viva… (3) The principle of conservation of (1) and (2) taken conjointly…that in every transfer of potential energy into… Continue reading
Block by Block – The Historical and Theoretical Foundations of Thermodynamics. “Hanlon has written a masterpiece.” – Mike Pauken, Senior Engineer, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and author of Thermodynamics for Dummies
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About Me
Hi! I’m Bob Hanlon. After earning my Sc.D. in chemical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and enjoying a long career in both industry and academia, I’ve returned to school, my own self-guided school, seeking to better understand the world of thermodynamics. Please join me on my journey.
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