An engine manufacturer makes the claim that the engine they have developed will,on each cycle,take 100 J of heat out of boiling water at 100°C,do mechanical work of 80 J,and exhaust 20 J of heat at 10°C.What,if anything,is wrong with this claim?
A) The heat exhausted must always be greater than the work done according to the second law of thermodynamics.
B) This engine violates the first law of thermodynamics because 100 J + 20 J ≠ 80 J.
C) An engine would operate by taking in heat at the lower temperature and exhausting heat at the higher temperature.
D) The efficiency of this engine is greater than the ideal Carnot cycle efficiency.
E) There is nothing wrong with this claim because 100 J = 20 J + 80 J.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The efficiency of a Carnot engine, which is the most efficient engine possible operating between two temperatures, is given by 1 - Tc/Th, where Tc is the cold reservoir temperature and Th is the hot reservoir temperature (in Kelvin). The efficiency claimed by the engine manufacturer exceeds this theoretical maximum, as it implies an efficiency of 80/100 = 80%, which is not possible between the given temperatures.

An Engine Manufacturer Makes the Claim That the Engine They