Nonequilibrium thermodynamics of surfaces captures the energy conversions in a shock wave

Abstract

A theory for the entropy production in a shock wave was developed using Gibbs’ excess properties in the framework of non-equilibrium thermodynamics (NET) of surfaces. The theory was used to analyze numerical results from non-equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations. The Gibbs equation for surface excess thermodynamic variables was confirmed by comparison with a direct numerical evaluation of the entropy balance. The NET analysis showed that the dominant contribution to the entropy production is the dissipation of kinetic and compression energy. This opens the door to accurate representations of energy conversions in shock waves.