OPTIMUM NONEQUILIBRIUM THERMODYNAMIC
FINITE-DURATION CYCLES WITH A LOCALLY
NONEQUILIBRIUM WORKING SUBSTANCE

A. I. Shnip

UDC 536.7

Optimum, as to the maximum work criterion, thermodynamic 
cycles of finite duration and, consequently, proceeding under nonequilibrium 
conditions are investigated. This is a class of problems that are 
usually considered in finite-time thermodynamics. The specific feature 
of the problem considered here is the fact that the working substance 
of the cycle is a relaxing gas, i.e., a thermodynamic system with 
internal state variables. The necessary information from the thermodynamic 
theory of such systems is given. A system of equations for determining 
the parameters of the optimum cycle and relations for finding the 
maximum work and the efficiency have been derived. Numerical simulation 
has been performed.

A. V. Luikov Heat and Mass Transfer Institute, National 
Academy of Sciences of Belarus, 15 P. Brovka Str., Minsk, 220072, 
Belarus. Translated from Inzhenerno-Fizicheskii Zhurnal, Vol. 78, 
No. 3, pp. 72-81, May-June, 2005. Original article submitted 
March 18, 2004.