Abstract
AbstractA manifestly covariant, coordinate independent reformulation of the thermodynamic field theory (TFT) is presented. The TFT is a covariant field theory that describes the evolution of a thermodynamic system, extending the near‐equilibrium theory established by Prigogine in 1954. We introduce the minimum rate of dissipation principle, which applies to any system relaxing toward a steady state. We also derive the thermodynamic field equations, which in the case of α–α and β–β processes have already appeared in the literature. In more general cases, the equations are notably simpler than those previously encountered, and they extend beyond the weak‐field regime. Finally, we derive the equations that determine the steady states as well as the critical values of the control parameters beyond which a steady state becomes unstable. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2007
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