Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 10, 2026

Differential Scanning Calorimetry — A Method for Assessing the Thermal Stability and Conformation of Protein Antigen
Published on: March 4, 2017
Thermodynamic functions of conformational changes. 2. Conformational entropy as a measure of information accumulation
Bela Viskolcz1, Szilard N Fejer, Imre G Csizmadia
1Department of Chemistry and Chemical Informatics, Faculty of Education, University of Szeged H-6701 Szeged, P.O. Box 396, Hungary. viskolcz@jgytf.u-szeged.hu
Abstract:
Various folded molecular structures contain different amount of information. The relative amount of information may be related to relative entropy or entropy change. The conformational entropy change for n-butane has been computed as the function of rotation around the central C-C bond. It appears that the g+ or g- conformers contain about 16% more information than the anti-structure. Furthermore, the syn conformation with the two groups eclipsed contained about 42% more information than the fully staggered anti orientation. The conformational entropy function calculated from 3N - 7 internal degrees of freedom was found to be a continuous function.
Related Concept Videos
Entropy and the Second Law of Thermodynamics
The relation between entropy and disorder can be illustrated with the example of the phase change of ice to water. In ice, the molecules are located at specific sites giving a solid state, whereas, in a liquid form, these molecules are much freer to move. The molecular arrangement has therefore become more randomized. Although the change in average...
Entropy and the Second Law of Thermodynamics
The Second Law of Thermodynamics
Entropy
When an ideal gas expands isothermally, the disorder in the gas increases. From the molecular perspective, the gas molecules have more volume to move around in.
Consider an infinitesimal step in the expansion, which...
Entropy
Third Law of Thermodynamics

