Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 27, 2025

Experimental Investigation of Secondary Flow Structures Downstream of a Model Type IV Stent Failure in a 180° Curved Artery Test Section
Published on: July 19, 2016
Shannon Entropy as an Indicator for Sorting Processes in Hydrothermal Systems
Frank J A van Ruitenbeek1, Jasper Goseling2, Wim H Bakker1
1Department of Earth Systems Analysis, Faculty of Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation (ITC), University of Twente, Hengelosestraat 99, 7500 AA Enschede, The Netherlands.
Abstract:
Hydrothermal processes modify the chemical and mineralogical composition of rock. We studied and quantified the effects of hydrothermal processes on the composition of volcanic rocks by a novel application of the Shannon entropy, which is a measure of uncertainty and commonly applied in information theory. We show here that the Shannon entropies calculated on major elemental chemical composition data and short-wave infrared (SWIR) reflectance spectra of hydrothermally altered rocks are lower than unaltered rocks with a comparable primary composition. The lowering of the Shannon entropy indicates chemical and spectral sorting during hydrothermal alteration of rocks. The hydrothermal processes described in this study present a natural mechanism for transforming energy from heat to increased order in rock. The increased order is manifest as the increased sorting of chemical elements and SWIR absorption features of the rock, and can be measured and quantified by the Shannon entropy. The results are useful for the study of hydrothermal mineral deposits, early life environments and the effects of hydrothermal processes on rocks.
Related Concept Videos
Entropy
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 and Solvation
Second Law of Thermodynamics
Second Law of Thermodynamics
The Second Law of Thermodynamics

