12.1 The first law of thermodynamics  (Page 5/9)

The body provides us with an excellent indication that many thermodynamic processes are irreversible . An irreversible process can go in one direction but not the reverse, under a given set of conditions. For example, although body fat can be converted to do work and produce heat transfer, work done on the body and heat transfer into it cannot be converted to body fat. Otherwise, we could skip lunch by sunning ourselves or by walking down stairs. Another example of an irreversible thermodynamic process is photosynthesis. This process is the intake of one form of energy—light—by plants and its conversion to chemical potential energy. Both applications of the first law of thermodynamics are illustrated in [link] . One great advantage of conservation laws such as the first law of thermodynamics is that they accurately describe the beginning and ending points of complex processes, such as metabolism and photosynthesis, without regard to the complications in between. [link] presents a summary of terms relevant to the first law of thermodynamics.

Section summary

• The first law of thermodynamics is given as $\mathrm{\Delta }U=Q-W$ , where $\mathrm{\Delta }U$ is the change in internal energy of a system, $Q$ is the net heat transfer (the sum of all heat transfer into and out of the system), and $W$ is the net work done (the sum of all work done on or by the system).
• Both $Q$ and $W$ are energy in transit; only $\mathrm{\Delta }U$ represents an independent quantity capable of being stored.
• The internal energy $U$ of a system depends only on the state of the system and not how it reached that state.
• Metabolism of living organisms, and photosynthesis of plants, are specialized types of heat transfer, doing work, and internal energy of systems.

Conceptual questions