Educator

Carnot Engine

• Carnot engine is a heat engine operating in a reversible cycle between two energy reservoirs. One cycle consists of four steps:
1. Isothermal expansion of an ideal gas at a high temperature T_H.
2. Adiabatic expansion
3. Isothermal compression at a lower temperature T_C.
4. Adiabatic compression to the initial state.
• The efficiency of a Carnot engine is e = 1 – T_C/T_H.
• Carnot principle: No machine operating between two energy reservoirs is more efficient than a Carnot engine operating between the same reservoirs.