Thermodynamics Course 1: Fundamentals and Modeling for Industrial Process and Natural Phenomena

Supervised-Live Online-Course, 14 Lectures. Registration Form

If you know many things, however, still you feel difficulties to start modeling and simulation for your research projects and industrial process, the solution can be upgrading your “Thermodynamics Knowledge”. Thermodynamics is indeed the main working table that enable us to start building up physical concepts of our project, and apply required transport phenomena mechanisms, towards mathematical modeling, calculations and simulations for process optimization.

This Thermodynamic Course is designed for students, engineers and experts in different fields who wants to start learning thermodynamics for their research works, industrial process design and natural phenomena analysis, as well for participants who may have some basis in thermodynamics, however they are looking for interactive supervised-live courses in thermodynamics towards full understanding of the key concepts and formulations, to empower them for their research projects, modeling and CFD simulations in mechanical engineering, chemical engineering, biomedical engineering, fluid dynamics, Civil and Environmental Technology.

Course Contents and Lectures

1. Introduction to Thermodynamics-Industrial and Scientific Aspects

• The importance of thermodynamics in industry and process design
• Steam Power Plants, Gas Turbines, Fuel Cell, Refrigeration Cycle, etc.
• Mass and energy exchange modeling
• System properties and transport across boundary 
• Energy, work, and heat

2. Basic concepts: System, Material, Energy, State, Process

• Thermodynamic systems: Closed and open control volume
• Macroscopic and microscopic approaches
• Properties and state of a substances
• Processes and cycles
• Units for mass, length, time, and force
• Energy
• Specific volume and density
• Pressure and temperature
• The zeroth law of thermodynamics

3. Properties of Pure Substances

• Phase diagrams
• Vapor-Liquid-Solid-Phase equilibrium in a pure substance
•  Independent properties of a pure substance
• Tables of thermodynamic properties
• The p–v–t behavior of gases
• The compressibility factor
• Equations of state
• Engineering applications

4. Work And Heat

• Definition of work types and units
• Work done at the moving boundaries
• Definition of heat, and transport mechanisms
• Comparison of heat and work
• Engineering Applications

5.The First Law of Thermodynamics

• Energy conservation principle
• Internal energy and enthalpy
• Application to closed and open systems
• Examples and Applications

6. Energy Analysis of Closed Systems

• Work and heat transfer
• Energy balance equations for closed systems
• Isothermal, isochoric, and adiabatic processes

7. Mass and Energy Balance Analysis of Open Systems (Control Volumes)

• Control volume analysis in steady and unsteady systems
• Flow work and the concept of enthalpy
• Application in engineering devices (pumps, turbines, compressors)

8. The Second Law of Thermodynamics

• Heat engines and refrigerators
• The second law of thermodynamics
• The reversible process
• Irreversibility factors
• The Carnot Cycle
• Entropy concept and its physical meaning
• Clausius and Kelvin-Planck statements

9. Entropy and Energy Quality

• Entropy balance for closed and open systems
• The Steady-State Process and the Transient Process
• Isentropic processes and efficiency
• Entropy generation in practical systems

10. Overview on Thermodynamic Cycles: Power Plants and Refrigeration

• The Carnot cycle
• Rankine and Brayton cycles (steam and gas power plants)
• Cycle efficiency and applications in engineering
• Vapor-compression refrigeration cycle

11. Thermodynamics Property Relations

• The Clapeyron Equation
• Mathematical Relations for a Homogeneous Phase
• The Maxwell Relations
• Enthalpy, Internal Energy, and Entropy, Relations
• Helmholtz Free Energy
• Gibbs Free Energy
• Volume Expansivity Isothermal and Adiabatic
• Compressibility
• Real-Gas Behavior and Equations of State
• The Property Relation for Mixtures

12 Phase Change and Multiphase Systems

• Phase equilibrium and Gibbs phase rule
• Understanding P-v-T surfaces and Clapeyron equation
• Phase transitions in engineering applications
• Interfacial Properties and Boundary Conditions

13: Thermodynamics of Compressible Flow

Basics of compressible flow, Ideal and non-ideal gas behavior, Applications to fluid dynamics and CFD simulations

14. Further Topics in Advanced Thermodynamics

• Thermodynamics of Gas-Vapor Mixtures
• Introduction to psychrometry for HVAC
• Chemical Thermodynamics and Combustion

Selected References

1. “Fundamentals of Thermodynamics” by Richard ESonntag, Claus Borgnakke, and Gordon J. Van Wylen.

2. “Thermodynamics: An Engineering Approach” by Yunus A. Çengel and Michael A. Boles

3. “Introduction to Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics” by J.M. Smith, H.C. Van Ness, and M.M. Abbott

4. “Modern Engineering Thermodynamics” by Robert T. Balmer