Lesson Plan

Explain what thermal equilibrium is and the condition (thermal contact) required to reach it

State the zeroth law of thermodynamics and explain its analogy to the transitive property of equality

Identify thermal equilibrium in everyday situations and explain why a thermometer reading equals the temperature of the object it measures

Explain why two systems without thermal contact (such as the sun and Earth) never reach thermal equilibrium

12.1

"We learned in the previous chapter that when two objects (or systems) are in contact with one another, heat will transfer thermal energy from the object at higher temperature to the one at lower temperature until they both reach the same temperature. The objects are then in thermal equilibrium, and no further temperature changes will occur if they are isolated from other systems." "Thermal equilibrium is established when two bodies are in thermal contact with each other—meaning heat transfer (i.e., the transfer of energy by heat) can occur between them. If two systems cannot freely exchange energy, they will not reach thermal equilibrium." "If two systems, A and B, are in thermal equilibrium with each other, and B is in thermal equilibrium with a third system, C, then A is also in thermal equilibrium with C. This statement may seem obvious, because all three have the same temperature, but it is basic to thermodynamics. It is called the zeroth law of thermodynamics." "The zeroth law of thermodynamics is very similar to the transitive property of equality in mathematics: If a = b and b = c, then a = c."