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Entropy
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Optimized Entropic Pathways
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Optimized Entropic Pathways

A special issue of Entropy (ISSN 1099-4300).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2019) | Viewed by 10863

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Jainagesh (Jai) Sekhar

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221, USA
Interests: patterns; entropy; novel materials; antimicrobial technologies; materials processing; solidification; high-temperature systems; surface texture
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Sarah Watzman

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221, USA
Interests: thermoelectrics; thermomagnetic transport; topological materials; materials and devices for energy conversion

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Summary: In quantifying changed thermodynamic properties, the shape or form is currently being recognized as equally important as the magnitude of the changed property itself. Pathway selections lead to transport manipulation and new patterns. Thus, the pathway of a thermodynamic change or a steady-state behavior is important as it is the genesis of morphology and also novel properties. In ductile solid-state materials engineering, properties such as the yield strength are more related to the shape (the grain shape and curvature) than to the bond strength. Similarly, for biological, chemical, and nuclear reactions, the reaction pathway often influences the applications of the final reaction products. Non-equilibrium pathways for synthesis or imposed steady-state, non-equilibrium conditions during the synthesis and use of new materials are increasingly becoming recognized as useful drivers for obtaining a critical energy objective in critical applications that span plasma engineering, thermoelectrics, thermomagnetics, photonics/plasmonics, and inter-planetary propulsion methods. One of the main pathway selection variables is the rate of entropy generation. Biomimetic and geological understanding is sometimes very useful for recognizing patterns across several length scales that may form during the synthesis of materials by non-equilibrium processes at a completely different scale.

History: Théophile deDonder (1872–1957) recognized the need for a new thermodynamic principle that would allow for the prediction of pathways for spontaneous behavior in entropy-generating chemical reactions. The understanding of time-dependent thermodynamics and patterns was further advanced by Emmy Noether (1882–1935), Lev Landau (1908–1968), Alan Turing (1912–1954), Srinivasa Ramanujan (1887–1920), Boris Belousov (1893–1970), Ilya Prigogine (1917–2003), J. W. Gibbs (1839–1903), and Lars Onsager (1903-–1976), among several others. The search for a fundamental principle that can explain the evolution of shapes (dynamics) and impact the rate of transport utilizes the entropy production/generation rate maximization (MEPR) as a principle. Several non-equilibrium processes and microstructures have already become the impetus for useful new technologies in physics, reaction chemistry/engineering, surface engineering, microstructure prediction, and general transport phenomena.

Solicitation: Articles that are related to novel transport pathways or new shapes, including quasicrystals, quasi-random phenomena, topographical evolution, self-organization behavior, topology, Markov process applications for non-steady-state calculations, novel device manufacture for power transfer, or for the optimization of other important objectives are solicited for this issue. Articles are also invited that offer biomimetic or geological comparisons for the synthesis and properties of composite materials.

Prof. Dr. Jainagesh Sekhar
Dr. Sarah Watzman
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Entropy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • entropic pathways
  • optimized objectives in energy transport
  • morphological evolution
  • biological, chemical, nuclear, and surface reactions
  • plasma engineering
  • thermoelectric transport and materials
  • topological transport
  • thermomagnetic transport, surface engineering, photonics/plasmonics and inter-planetary propulsion, novel/non-equilibrium synthesis, entropy generation calculations

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

27 pages, 2347 KiB  
Article
Impact of Interparticle Interaction on Thermodynamics of Nano-Channel Transport of Two Species
by Wolfgang Rudolf Bauer
Entropy 2020, 22(4), 376; https://doi.org/10.3390/e22040376 - 25 Mar 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3406
Abstract
Understanding the function and control of channel transport is of paramount importance for cell physiology and nanotechnology. In particular, if several species are involved, the mechanisms of selectivity, competition, cooperation, pumping, and its modulation need to be understood. What lacks is a rigorous [...] Read more.
Understanding the function and control of channel transport is of paramount importance for cell physiology and nanotechnology. In particular, if several species are involved, the mechanisms of selectivity, competition, cooperation, pumping, and its modulation need to be understood. What lacks is a rigorous mathematical approach within the framework of stochastic thermodynamics, which explains the impact of interparticle in-channel interactions on the transport properties of the respective species. To achieve this, stochastic channel transport of two species is considered in a model, which different from mean field approaches, explicitly conserves the spatial correlation of the species within the channel by analysis of the stochastic dynamics within a state space, the elements of which are the channel’s spatial occupation states. The interparticle interactions determine the stochastic transitions between these states. Local flow and entropy production in this state space reveal the respective particle flows through the channel and the intensity of the Brownian ratchet like rectifying forces, which these species exert mutually on each other, together with its thermodynamic effectiveness and costs. Perfect coupling of transport of the two species is realized by an attractive empty channel and strong repulsive forces between particles of the same species. This confines the state space to a subspace with circular topology, in which the concentration gradients as thermodynamic driving forces act in series, and channel flow of both species becomes equivalent. For opposing concentration gradients, this makes the species with the stronger gradient the driving, positive entropy producing one; the other is driven and produces negative entropy. Gradients equal in magnitude make all flows vanish, and thermodynamic equilibrium occurs. A differential interparticle interaction with less repulsive forces within particles of one species but maintenance of this interaction for the other species adds a bypass path to this circular subspace. On this path, which is not involved in coupling of the two species, a leak flow of the species with less repulsive interparticle interaction emerges, which is directed parallel to its concentration gradient and, hence, produces positive entropy here. Different from the situation with perfect coupling, appropriate strong opposing concentration gradients may simultaneously parallelize the flow of their respective species, which makes each species produce positive entropy. The rectifying potential of the species with the bypass option is diminished. This implies the existence of a gradient of the other species, above which its flow and gradient are parallel for any gradient of the less coupled species. The opposite holds for the less coupled species. Its flow may always be rectified and turned anti-parallel to its gradient by a sufficiently strong opposing gradient of the other one. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Optimized Entropic Pathways)
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15 pages, 4869 KiB  
Article
Explanation of Experimentally Observed Phenomena in Hot Tokamak Plasmas from the Nonequilibrium Thermodynamics Position
by Ksenia A. Razumova, Valerii F. Andreev, Nadezhda V. Kasyanova and Sergey E. Lysenko
Entropy 2020, 22(1), 53; https://doi.org/10.3390/e22010053 - 30 Dec 2019
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2641
Abstract
In studying the hot plasma behavior in tokamak devices, the classical approach for collisional processes is traditionally used. This approach leaves unexplained a number of phenomena observed in experiments related to plasma energy confinement. Further, it is well known that tokamak plasma is [...] Read more.
In studying the hot plasma behavior in tokamak devices, the classical approach for collisional processes is traditionally used. This approach leaves unexplained a number of phenomena observed in experiments related to plasma energy confinement. Further, it is well known that tokamak plasma is always turbulent and self-organized. In the present paper, we show that the nonequilibrium thermodynamics approach allows us to explain many observed dependences and paradoxes; for example, puffing of impurities results in confinement improvement if zones of plasma cooling by impurities and additional plasma heating are not overlapped. The analysis of the experimental results shows the important role of radiation losses at the plasma edge in the processes determining its total energy confinement. It is shown that the generally accepted dependence of energy confinement on plasma density is not quite adequate because it is a consequence of dependence on radiation losses. The phenomenon of the appearance of internal transport barriers and magnetic islands can also be explained by plasma self-organization. The obtained results may be taken into account when calculating the operation of a future tokamak reactor. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Optimized Entropic Pathways)
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13 pages, 2058 KiB  
Article
Solidification Morphology and Bifurcation Predictions with the Maximum Entropy Production Rate Model
by Yaw Delali Bensah and J. A. Sekhar
Entropy 2020, 22(1), 40; https://doi.org/10.3390/e22010040 - 26 Dec 2019
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4456
Abstract
The use of the principle of maximum entropy generation per unit volume is a new approach in materials science that has implications for understanding the morphological evolution during solid–liquid interface growth, including bifurcations with or without diffuseness. A review based on a pre-publication [...] Read more.
The use of the principle of maximum entropy generation per unit volume is a new approach in materials science that has implications for understanding the morphological evolution during solid–liquid interface growth, including bifurcations with or without diffuseness. A review based on a pre-publication arXiv preprint is first presented. A detailed comparison with experimental observations indicates that the Maximum Entropy Production Rate-density model (MEPR) can correctly predict bifurcations for dilute alloys during solidification. The model predicts a critical diffuseness of the interface at which a plane-front or any other form of diffuse interface will become unstable. A further confidence test for the model is offered in this article by comparing the predicted liquid diffusion coefficients to those obtained experimentally. A comparison of the experimentally determined solute diffusion constant in dilute binary Pb–Sn alloys with those predicted by the various solidification instability models (1953–2011) is additionally discussed. A good predictability is noted for the MEPR model when the interface diffuseness is small. In comparison, the more traditional interface break-down models have low predictiveness. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Optimized Entropic Pathways)
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