The Limits of Nature

Lessons

• The Rankine Cycle

  Learn how water is used to transfer energy into useful work.

• The Second and Third Laws of Thermodynamics

  Learn an inescapable truth about the organization of everything in the universe.

• Materials of Interest

  Thermal power plants go through a range of extreme conditions. Things are heated to a high temperature and then cooled through a series of system. Learn about the materials that are used and how they survive such extreme conditions.

• The First Law of Thermodynamics

  This is a key concept to understand in order to make sense of what happens in any system that uses energy.

• Energy Sources
• Introduction to Thermodynamics

  What is thermodynamics? Take this lesson to find out.

  Sometimes the rules of nature are so obvious that you don't think to declare them as true. This lesson also explains this most fundamental law that sets the stage for the others.

• Water Under Pressure

  You know that water changes form at special temperatures. It freezes into ice when it is cold, flows as liquid at room temperature, and evaporates into water vapor at high temperatures. You may not realize that water behaves differently depending on how much pressure it is under.