19.2 Entropy and the Second Law of Thermodynamics

The first law of Thermodynamics provides the means for accounting for energy, but it gives no hint as to why a particular process occurs in a given direction. A process is considered to be spontaneous if it occurs without outside intervention, and the driving force for a spontaneous process is an increase in entropy. We can define entropy as the measure of randomness or disorder and entropy can be expressed mathematically using macro/microstates and we can also compare the entropy of various systems.

19.2 Mathematical Definition of Entropy

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