The Carnot cycle and the teaching of thermodynamics: a historical approach

Abstract

The Carnot cycle is a topic that is traditionally present in introductory physics courses dedicated to the teaching of thermodynamics, playing an essential role in introducing the concept of Entropy and the consequent formulation of the second Law. Its effective understanding and contribution to the development of thermodynamics is often hindered, however. Among other things, this is the result of a pragmatic approach, which usually limits itself to presenting the isotherms and adiabatic curves in a P-V diagram and is totally disconnected from the historical fundamentals of Heat Theory. The purpose of this paper is to reveal the potential of an approach to the subject that recovers the historical and social dimensions of scientific knowledge, and to promote reflections about the nature of science (NOS).

A demonstration experiment for studying the properties of saturated vapor

“…The Physics Education magazine has recently published experimental works with perfect gas and condensed matter in its Thermodynamics section [6][7][8][9]. These classic issues are well covered in academic papers, so our attention is focused only on the topic 'saturated vapor' as one the most complex and least researched.…”

Gibbs' rational reconstruction of thermodynamics according to the heuristic tradition of Descartes' analytical method

“…More details on Carnot's cycle can be found in[24] 5. The notation d is used here to emphasize that Q and W are not state functions, therefore, in a mathematical language d is not an exact differential.…”