Consider a Carnot cycle starting at the state of highest pressure and smallest volume.Call the isothermal expansion that starts at this state step 1,the adiabatic expansion which follows step 2,the isothermal compression that then follows step 3,and the adiabatic compression which returns the system to the initial state step 4.In which step does the entropy of the system increase?
A)1
B)2
C)3
D)4

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

During the isothermal expansion (step 1), the system absorbs heat from the reservoir at a constant temperature, leading to an increase in entropy. In the other steps, entropy either remains constant (in adiabatic processes, steps 2 and 4) or decreases (in isothermal compression, step 3, where heat is expelled).

Consider a Carnot Cycle Starting at the State of Highest