Suppose a power plant uses a Carnot engine to generate electricity, using the atmosphere at 300 K as the low-temperature reservoir. Suppose the power plant produces an amount of electricity with the hot reservoir at 500 K during Day One and then produces the same amount of electricity with the hot reservoir at 600 K during Day Two. The thermal pollution was:

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The thermal pollution is related to the waste heat rejected to the low-temperature reservoir. The efficiency of a Carnot engine is given by 1 - (T_cold/T_hot). A higher efficiency means less waste heat. On Day One, with a lower hot reservoir temperature (500 K), the efficiency is lower compared to Day Two (600 K), resulting in more waste heat and thus greater thermal pollution on Day One.

Suppose a Power Plant Uses a Carnot Engine to Generate