Demonstrations

Carnot Engine

Code Number :	4F30.96
Disclaimer:	Reprinted by permission of Dick Berg, University of Maryland, for use on this website. The demonstrations contained and referenced herein are listed for the purposes of cataloging and describing physics demonstrations which should be conducted only under the direction of a trained instructional support professional or physicist. These demonstrations are not presented for the purpose of being conducted by persons unconnected to this Facility and/or persons not consulting with or being supervised by the recognized instructional support professional or physicist and his/her staff. The University is responsible only for those demonstrations carried out using its own equipment using established safety and scheduling policies, and bears no responsibility for those choosing to use this source material for their own purposes. All demonstrations described and contained herein are public domain, and can also be found in reference materials in libraries, bookstores, and electronic sources. Further information regarding legal liability in use of demonstrations and labs will be found on the web site Injuries in School/College Laboratories in USA. The University of Iowa Disclaimers: University of Iowa Disclaimer All Rights Reserved..
Condition :	Good
Principle :	Carnot Cycle
Area of Study :	Heat and Fluids
Equipment :	4 cylinders with Cork Plungers, Colored Blocks (Heat Sinks), Computer Program - Thermodynamics.
Procedure :	The cylinders with the plungers and heat sinks are used to show the Carnot cycle at different stages. The computer program 'Thermodynamics' has a good computer animation of a Carnot cycle complete with temperature and pressure curves.

References

Harvey S. Leff, "A Reminder for Us All", TPT, Vol. 34, # 3, Mar. 1996, p. 134.

Michael J. Nolan, "Thermodynamic Cycles - One More Time", TPT, Vol. 33, # 8, Dec. 1995, p. 573.

David S. Mills and Craig S. Huston, "The "Sadly Cannot" Thermodynamic Cycle Revisited", TPT, Vol. 29, # 3, Mar. 1991, p. 180.

Minghua Chen, "An Electrical Model of a Carnot Cycle", TPT, Vol. 27, # 4, Apr. 1989, p.272.

A. J. Nicastro, "A Dynamic Model of a Carnot Cycle", TPT, Vol. 21, # 7, Oct. 1983, p. 463.

Jack Willis and Donald F. Kirwan, "The "Sadly Cannot" Thermodynamic Cycle", TPT, Vol. 18, # 1, Jan. 1980, p. 51.

Mario Iona, "The Two-Stroke Heat Engine", TPT, Vol. 18, # 5, May 1980, p. 336.

Tomas Opatrny, "The Maser as a Reversible Heat Engine", AJP, Vol. 73, # 1, Jan. 2005, p. 63.

E. Rebhan, "Efficiency of Nonideal Carnot Engines with Friction and Heat Losses", AJP, Vol. 70, # 11, Nov. 2002, p. 1143.

J. Guemez, C. Fiolhais, M. Fiolhais, "Sadi Carnot on Carnot's Theorem", AJP, Vol. 70, # 1, Jan. 2002, p. 42.

M. Howard Lee, "Carnot Cycle for Photon Gas?", AJP, Vol. 69, # 8, p. 874, August 2001.

E. Rebhan and B. Ahlborn, "Frequency-Dependent Performance of a Nonideal Carnot Engine", AJP, Vol. 55, # 5, May 1987, p. 423.

Harvey S. Leff, "Thermal Efficiency at Maximum Work Output: New Results for Old Heat Engines", AJP, Vol. 55, # 7, July 1987, p. 602.

Harvey S. Left, "Heat Engines and the Performance of External Work", AJP, Vol. 46, (3), Mar. 1978, p. 218.

F. L. Curzon, B. Ahlborn, "Efficiency of a Carnot Engine at Maximum Power Output", AJP, Vol. 43, # 1, Jan. 1975, p. 22.

G.S. Kell, "Heat Engines that Use a Gravitational Field", AJP, Vol. 42, # 3, March 1974, p. 209.

Kerry Emanuel, "Hurricanes: Tempests in a Greenhouse", Physics Today, August 2006, p. 74.

Mail Questions and Comments to: Dale Stille