A Critical Review of the Theorems of Thermodynamic Availability, with Concise Formulations

Abstract

In the study of availability, an evaluation of the effects of irreversibility on work output or input is of equal importance to the derivation of the expressions for reversible work reviewed in Part 1 of this paper (see last issue). In Part 2, means of evaluating these effects in a simple way are reviewed, both as regards the local and overall effects of irreversibility in multi-process plant. A critical, historical review of the entire subject appears in Appendix 4.