Treatise on Thermodynamics

by Max Planck

Written by the founder of quantum theory, a Nobel Prize winner, this classic volume is still recognized as among the best introductions to thermodynamics. It is a model of conciseness and logic, ideally suited to the needs of both students and research workers in physics and chemistry.
Based on Planck's original papers, the book offers a uniform point of view for the entire field. Rejecting the earlier approaches of Helmholtz and Maxwell, Planck makes no assumptions regarding the nature of heat, but begins with only a few empirical facts from which he deduces new physical and chemical laws. He considers fundamental facts and definitions (temperature, molecular weight, quantity of heat), the first and second fundamental principles of thermodynamics (applications to homogeneous and non-homogeneous systems, proof, general deductions), and applications to special states of equilibrium (homogeneous systems, systems in various states of aggregation, system of any number of independent constituents, gaseous systems, dilute solutions, absolute value of the entropy, Nernst’s theorem). Throughout the book numerous examples are worked.

Genres: Science, Physics, Reference

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1905

About the author

Max Karl Ernst Ludwig Planck was a German theoretical physicist who originated quantum theory, which won him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918.

Planck made many contributions to theoretical physics, but his fame rests primarily on his role as originator of the quantum theory. This theory revolutionized human understanding of atomic and subatomic processes, just as Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity revolutionized the understanding of space and time. Together they constitute the fundamental theories of 20th-century physics.

Reviews

[William Schram · Rating 5 out of 5]

This treatise builds logically from the basics of temperature and heat to build the laws of Thermodynamics. The surprising thing is that back in the 1920s when this edition came out, scientists didn't know exactly how to define the Second Law of Thermodynamics. That is the one that says that Entropy of a system tends toward disorder.

The book is not perfect, there are things that annoyed me about it. The main thing was that Planck used the CGS system of measure. I suppose I can understand that it was just typical of how measurements were made back then. That is why it didn't lower my score for the book at all. At least he used a form of metric.

[Bob Finch · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thorough treatment elegantly presented.