Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics is one of the four laws of thermodynamics.

The
credit for formulating the law goes to Ralph H. Fowler. Interestingly, the zeroth law
of thermodynamics was actually developed much later than the original three laws.
However, there was some confusion regarding the nomenclature, whether it should
be named the fourth law or some other name. The complication arose because the
new law gave a much clearer definition of the temperature and basically replaced
what the other three laws had to state. Finally, Fowler came up with a name to end
this conflict.

The zeroth law of thermodynamics frames an idea of temperature as an indicator of

thermal equilibrium.

What Is Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics?

When a body, ‘A’, is in thermal equilibrium with another body, ‘b’, and also separately
in thermal equilibrium with a body ‘, C’, then body, ‘B’ and ‘C’, will also be in thermal
equilibrium with each other. This statement defines the zeroth law of
thermodynamics. The law is based on temperature measurement.

There are also various ways to state the zeroth law of thermodynamics. However, in
simple terms, it can be said, “Systems that are in thermal equilibrium exist at the
same temperature”.
Zeroth law of thermodynamics takes into account that temperature is something
worth measuring because it predicts whether heat will transfer between objects or
not. This is true regardless of how the objects interact. Even if two objects are not in
physical contact, heat can still flow between them by means of the radiation mode
of heat transfer. On the other hand, the zeroth law of thermodynamics states that if
the systems are in thermal equilibrium, no heat flow will take place.

Thermal Equilibrium

Temperature is a property that distinguishes thermodynamics from other sciences.

This property can distinguish between hot and cold. When two or more bodies at
different temperatures are brought into contact, then after some time, they attain a
common temperature, and they are said to exist in thermal equilibrium.

Systems are said to be in thermal equilibrium if there is no heat transfer, even if they
are in a position to transfer heat, based on other factors. For example, if we put food
in the refrigerator overnight, then the food is in thermal equilibrium with the air of the
refrigerator. Heat no longer flows from food to the air or from the air to the food, and
this state is known as thermal equilibrium.

Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics Example and Applications

The zeroth law of thermodynamics is important for the mathematical formulation of

thermodynamics or, more precisely, to state the mathematical definition of
temperature. This law is mostly used to compare the temperatures of different
objects.

If we want to measure the accurate temperature, a reference body is required, and

a certain characteristic of the body changes with temperature. The change in the
characteristic may be taken as an indication of a change in temperature. The
selected characteristic is known as thermodynamic property.

Nonetheless, the most common application of the zeroth law of thermodynamics can
be seen in thermometers. We can observe the zeroth law in action by taking a very
common thermometer having mercury in a tube. As the temperature increases, this
mercury expands since the area of the tube is constant. Due to this expansion, the
height is increased. Now, the increase in the height of the mercury label shows the
changes in temperature and basically helps us to measure it.

There are different kinds of thermometers that can be used depending on their
thermometric property, and they are as follows.

Thermometer Thermometric Property

Constant volume gas thermometer Pressure

Constant pressure gas thermometer Volume

Electrical resistance thermometer Resistant

Thermocouple Thermal e.m.f.

Mercury-in-glass thermometer Length

Similarly, another example of the zeroth law of thermodynamics is when you have
two glasses of water. One glass contains hot water, and the other contains cold
water. Now, if we leave them on the table for a few hours, they will attain thermal
equilibrium with the temperature of the room.

What is the first law of thermodynamics?

The first law of thermodynamics states that energy cannot be created or destroyed,
but it can be transferred.

The first law of thermodynamics states that heat is a form of energy, and
thermodynamic processes are therefore subject to the principle of conservation of
energy. This means that heat energy cannot be created or destroyed, according
to Britannica. It can, however, be transferred from one location to another and
converted to and from other forms of energy.

"The First Law says that the internal energy of a system has to be equal to the work
that is being done on the system, plus or minus the heat that flows in or out of the
system and any other work that is done on the system," Saibal Mitra, a professor of
physics at Missouri State University, told Live Science. "So, it's a restatement of
conservation of energy."

"The change in internal energy of a system is the sum of all the energy inputs and
outputs to and from the system similarly to how all the deposits and withdrawals you
make determine the changes in your bank balance".

This is expressed mathematically as: ΔU = Q — W, where ΔU is the change in the

internal energy, Q is the heat added to the system, and W is the work done by the
system, according to Britannica.

Scientists in the late 18th and early 19th centuries adhered to caloric theory, first
proposed by Antoine Lavoisier in 1783, and further bolstered by the work of Sadi
Carnot in 1824, according to the American Physical Society. This scientific
theory treated heat as a kind of fluid that naturally flowed from hot to cold regions,
much as water flows from high to low places. When this caloric fluid flowed from a
hot to a cold region, it could be converted to kinetic energy and made to do work
much as falling water could drive a water wheel. It wasn't until Rudolf Clausius
published "The Mechanical Theory of Heat" in 1867 that caloric theory was finally
put to rest, according to the University of Virginia.

The most common practical application of the First Law is the heat engine. Heat
engines convert thermal energy into mechanical energy and vice versa. Most heat
engines fall into the category of open systems. The basic principle of a heat engine
exploits the relationships among heat, volume and pressure of a working fluid (any
substance that flows), typically a gas, according to Georgia State University.
Examples of working fluids include steam in a steam engine and hydrofluorocarbons
in refrigeration systems.
Refrigerators and heat pumps are heat engines that convert mechanical energy to
heat. Most of these fall into the category of closed systems. When the working fluid,
or gas, is compressed, its temperature increases. This hot gas can then transfer heat
to its surrounding environment. Then, when the compressed gas is allowed to
expand, its temperature becomes colder than it was before it was compressed
because some of its heat energy was removed during the hot cycle. This cold gas
can then absorb heat energy from its environment. This is the working principle
behind an air conditioner, according to Boston University. Air conditioners don't
actually produce cold; they remove heat.

A hot gas, when confined in a chamber, exerts pressure on a piston, causing it to

move downward. The movement can be harnessed to do work equal to the total
force applied to the top of the piston times the distance that the piston moves.

The second law of thermodynamics deals with the direction taken by spontaneous
processes. Many processes occur spontaneously in one direction only—that is, they
are irreversible, under a given set of conditions. Although irreversibility is seen in
day-to-day life—a broken glass does not resume its original state, for instance—
complete irreversibility is a statistical statement that cannot be seen during the
lifetime of the universe. More precisely, an irreversible process is one that depends
on path. If the process can go in only one direction, then the reverse path differs
fundamentally and the process cannot be reversible. For example, as noted in the
previous section, heat involves the transfer of energy from higher to lower
temperature. A cold object in contact with a hot one never gets colder, transferring
heat to the hot object and making it hotter. Furthermore, mechanical energy, such as
kinetic energy, can be completely converted to thermal energy by friction, but the
reverse is impossible. A hot stationary object never spontaneously cools off and
starts moving. Yet another example is the expansion of a puff of gas introduced into
one corner of a vacuum chamber. The gas expands to fill the chamber, but it never
regroups in the corner. The random motion of the gas molecules could take them all
back to the corner, but this is never observed to happen.
Examples of one-way processes in nature. (a) Heat transfer occurs spontaneously
from hot to cold and not from cold to hot. (b) The brakes of this car convert its kinetic
energy to heat transfer to the environment. The reverse process is impossible. (c)
The burst of gas let into this vacuum chamber quickly expands to uniformly fill every
part of the chamber. The random motions of the gas molecules will never return them
to the corner.

The fact that certain processes never occur suggests that there is a law forbidding
them to occur. The first law of thermodynamics would allow them to occur—none of
those processes violate conservation of energy. The law that forbids these
processes is called the second law of thermodynamics. We shall see that the second
law can be stated in many ways that may seem different, but which in fact are
equivalent. Like all natural laws, the second law of thermodynamics gives insights
into nature, and its several statements imply that it is broadly applicable,
fundamentally affecting many apparently disparate processes.

The already familiar direction of heat transfer from hot to cold is the basis of our first
version of the second law of thermodynamics.

THE SECOND LAW OF THERMODYNAMICS (FIRST EXPRESSION)

Heat transfer occurs spontaneously from higher- to lower-temperature bodies but

never spontaneously in the reverse direction.

Another way of stating this: It is impossible for any process to have as its sole result
heat transfer from a cooler to a hotter object.
Conclusion

In conclusion, the zeroth law establishes the foundation for temperature and thermal
equilibrium, while the first law, known as the Law of Conservation of Energy,
underscores the principle that energy is conserved in various forms. The second law
introduces the concept of entropy, highlighting the tendency of systems to move
towards states of higher disorder and emphasizing the irreversibility of certain
processes. Together, these laws constitute the core principles of classical
thermodynamics, providing a comprehensive framework for understanding energy
behavior, conservation, and the inherent constraints on physical processes. Applied
across disciplines, from physics to biology, these laws offer fundamental insights into
the workings of the universe and guide analyses of energy transformations in diverse
systems.

https://byjus.com/jee/zeroth-law-of-thermodynamics/

https://www.livescience.com/50881-first-law-thermodynamics.html

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efficiency/