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Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics

Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics

Experimentally, if object A is in equilibrium with object B, and object B is in equilibrium with object C, then object A is in equilibrium with object C. That statement of transitivity is called the "zeroth law of thermodynamics." For example, a cold metal block and a hot metal block are both placed on a metal plate at room temperature. Eventually, the cold block and the plate will be in thermal equilibrium. In addition, the hot block and the plate will be in thermal equilibrium.

Third Law of Thermodynamics

Third Law of Thermodynamics

A pure, perfectly crystalline solid possessing no kinetic energy (that is, at a temperature of absolute zero, 0 K) may be described by a single microstate, as its purity, perfect crystallinity,and complete lack of motion means there is but one possible location for each identical atom or molecule comprising the crystal (W = 1). According to the Boltzmann equation, the entropy of this system is zero.

Gas Laws: Boyle's, Gay-Lussac, Charles', Avogadro's, and Ideal Gas Law

Gas Laws: Boyle's, Gay-Lussac, Charles', Avogadro's, and Ideal Gas Law

Through experiments, scientists established the mathematical relationships between pairs of variables, such as pressure and temperature, pressure and volume, volume and temperature, and volume and moles, that hold for an ideal gas.

Hess's Law

Hess's Law

There are two ways to determine the amount of heat involved in a chemical change: measure it experimentally, or calculate it from other experimentally determined enthalpy changes. Some reactions are difficult, if not impossible, to investigate and make accurate measurements for experimentally. And even when a reaction is not hard to perform or measure, it is convenient to be able to determine the heat involved in a reaction without having to perform an experiment.

Le Chatelier's Principle: Changing Temperature

Le Chatelier's Principle: Changing Temperature

Consistent with the law of mass action, an equilibrium stressed by a change in concentration will shift to re-establish equilibrium without any change in the value of the equilibrium constant, K. When an equilibrium shifts in response to a temperature change, however, it is re-established with a different relative composition that exhibits a different value for the equilibrium constant.
To understand this phenomenon, consider the elementary reaction:

Ideal Gas Equation

Ideal Gas Equation

The ideal gas equation is an equation of state that relates the state variables pressure, volume, temperature, and the number of moles of a hypothetical gas. This equation is a combination of four empirical laws, namely Boyle’s Law, Charles’s Law, Avogadro’s Law, and Gay-Lussac’s Law. When the proportionalities of the above four empirical laws are combined, it results in a single proportionality constant known as the universal gas constant.

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 20, 2025

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids

Published on: December 4, 2017

Finding Liebig's law of the minimum.

Jinyun Tang¹, William J Riley¹

¹Earth and Environmental Sciences Area, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California, 94720, USA.

Ecological Applications : a Publication of the Ecological Society of America

|September 16, 2021

Summary

Liebig's law of the minimum (LLM) is a flawed approximation of biochemical reactions. More accurate models exist for understanding biological growth and nutrient limitations.

Keywords:

additive model biogeochemical modeling biological growth complementary substrates law of mass action law of the minimum synthesizing unit

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Area of Science:

Ecology
Biochemistry
Mathematical Biology

Background:

Liebig's law of the minimum (LLM) is widely applied to biological growth data and co-limited growth modeling.
Its mechanistic basis and validity have been questioned since the 1820s.

Purpose of the Study:

To evaluate the mechanistic accuracy of Liebig's law of the minimum (LLM) compared to the law of mass action.
To assess the performance of LLM against other approximations of the law of mass action.

Main Methods:

LLM was analyzed as an approximation of the law of mass action.
Empirical data from algae and plants grown under co-limiting substrates were used for validation.
Growth was modeled as a function of substrate uptake and cellular nutrient quota.

Main Results:

LLM is a crude approximation of the law of mass action and less accurate than the synthesizing unit and additive models.
LLM restricts organisms to fixed stoichiometry, hindering analysis of adaptation and evolution.
Using cellular nutrient quota, LLM can yield good results but with potentially incorrect parameters.

Conclusions:

LLM's mechanistic deficiencies limit its application in ecological and evolutionary studies.
Further research is needed to compare biogeochemical models using different formulations and assess parameter calibration's impact.