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Adiabatic process
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{{Short description|Thermodynamic process in which no mass or heat is exchanged with surroundings}} {{About|adiabatic processes in thermodynamics|the adiabatic theorem in quantum mechanics|adiabatic theorem}} {{Thermodynamics|cTopic=[[Thermodynamic system|Systems]]}} An '''adiabatic process''' (''adiabatic'' {{etymology|grc|''{{Wikt-lang|grc|ἀδιάβατος}}'' ({{grc-transl|ἀδιάβατος}})|impassable}}) is a type of [[thermodynamic process]] that occurs without transferring [[heat]] between the [[thermodynamic system]] and its [[Environment (systems)|environment]]. Unlike an [[isothermal process]], an adiabatic process transfers energy to the surroundings only as [[Work (thermodynamics)|work]] and/or mass flow.<ref name="Carathéodory">{{cite journal |last=Carathéodory |first=C. |author-link=Constantin Carathéodory |date=1909 |title=Untersuchungen über die Grundlagen der Thermodynamik |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1428268 |journal=Mathematische Annalen |volume=67 |issue=3 |pages=355–386 |doi=10.1007/BF01450409 |s2cid=118230148}}. A translation may be found [http://neo-classical-physics.info/uploads/3/0/6/5/3065888/caratheodory_-_thermodynamics.pdf here] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191012152205/http://neo-classical-physics.info/uploads/3/0/6/5/3065888/caratheodory_-_thermodynamics.pdf|date=2019-10-12}}. Also a mostly reliable [https://books.google.com/books?id=xwBRAAAAMAAJ&q=Investigation+into+the+foundations translation is to be found] in {{cite book |last=Kestin |first=J. |title=The Second Law of Thermodynamics |date=1976 |publisher=Dowden, Hutchinson & Ross |location=Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania |language=en-us}}</ref><ref name="Bailyn 21">{{cite book |last=Bailyn |first=M. |title=A Survey of Thermodynamics |date=1994 |publisher=American Institute of Physics Press |isbn=0-88318-797-3 |location=New York, New York |page=21 |language=en-us}}</ref> As a key concept in [[thermodynamics]], the adiabatic process supports the theory that explains the [[first law of thermodynamics]]. The opposite term to "adiabatic" is ''diabatic''. Some chemical and physical processes occur too rapidly for energy to enter or leave the system as heat, allowing a convenient "adiabatic approximation".<ref name="Bailyn 53">Bailyn, M. (1994), pp. 52–53.</ref> For example, the [[adiabatic flame temperature]] uses this approximation to calculate the upper limit of [[fire|flame]] temperature by assuming combustion loses no heat to its surroundings. In [[meteorology]], adiabatic expansion and cooling of moist air, which can be triggered by winds flowing up and over a mountain for example, can cause the [[water vapor]] pressure to exceed the [[Vapor pressure|saturation vapor pressure]]. Expansion and cooling beyond the saturation vapor pressure is often idealized as a ''pseudo-adiabatic process'' whereby excess vapor instantly [[precipitation|precipitates]] into water droplets. The change in temperature of an air undergoing pseudo-adiabatic expansion differs from air undergoing adiabatic expansion because [[latent heat]] is released by precipitation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://glossary.ametsoc.org/wiki/Pseudoadiabatic_process|title=pseudoadiabatic process|publisher=[[American Meteorological Society]]|access-date=November 3, 2018}}</ref>
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