Re: What is the efficiency of an adiabatic system? (it doesn't take any input)

Hi Zahid,

The term "adiabatic" comes from the Greek word "adiabatos", meaning "not able to go through". In thermodynamics, an adiabatic system is one that is closed, not permitting exchange of heat. In other words, it is an "ideal" system, within which it is assumed that the work needed to change an adiabatic system from one defined state to another defined state is the same, no matter how the work is done.

By analogy, we can think about basic problems in mechanical physics; initially, in learning about forces, we ignore friction, inertia, etc., for the purpose of learning how a single defined force acts on a body. An "adiabatic system" is a useful learning tool to discuss thermodynamic and mechanical work, notably to describe the concept of conservation of internal energy:

dU = dq + dw

where dq is defined as a change in heat, dw is a change in the work done on a system, and dU is the change of internal energy.

In practice, an adiabatic bath is often referred to in instances where the temperature is intended to be held constant; usually, the adiabatic bath acts as a heat sink for some other reaction or chemical process.

Without knowing more about your particular problems, I can't offer much more in the way of an answer. I would advise that you refer to Physical Chemistry textbooks (such as those authored by either Atkins or by Tinoco, Sauer, Wang, and Puglisi), and/or take a class on Physical Chemistry for more introductory material on the subject.

Regards,

Dr. James Kranz