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A refrigerator is the reverse of a heat engine. Explain. |
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Answer» Solution :A heat engine is a device that extracts energy from its surroundings in the form of heat and does useful work as it CONTINUOUSLY repeats a thermodynamic cycle. In ONE cycle, the working substance absorbs energy as heat from a hot reservoir at constant temperature `T_(h),` converts PART of it into useful mechinical work and rejects the remaining as heat to a cold reservoir at constant temperature `T_(c) lt T_(h).` A refrigerator is a device that uses work to transfer energy in the form of heat from a cold reservoir to a hot reservoir as it continuously repeats a thermodynamic cycle. The net result is absorption of some energy as heat from a reservoir at low temperature, a net amount of work done on the system and the rejection of a larger amount of energy as heat to a reservoir at a higher temperature. Thus, a refrigerator performs a thermodynamic cycle in a direction opposite to that of a heat engine. Hence, a refrigerator is said to be the reverse of a heat engine. |
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