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Q.State and explain first law of thermodynamics. Give its mathematical form.

Jammu Kashmir JkboseJammu and Kashmir Board of School Education (Class 11) 2026Subjective· 3mImportance★★★★★
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The first law of thermodynamics is the law of conservation of energy applied to a thermodynamic system, expressed as Delta U = q + w.

Statement: The first law of thermodynamics states that energy can neither be created nor destroyed, although it can be converted from one form to another. Equivalently: the total energy of an isolated system remains constant.

Explanation: When a system undergoes a change of state, its internal energy (U) can change because the system exchanges energy with its surroundings in two ways: by exchanging heat (q) and by doing/receiving work (w). Whatever internal energy the system gains or loses must be exactly accounted for by the heat and work exchanged — no energy simply appears or vanishes.

Mathematical form:

Delta U = q + w

where:

  • Delta U = change in internal energy of the system (U_final - U_initial), a state function.
  • q = heat absorbed by the system (positive) or released by the system (negative) — IUPAC convention.
  • w = work done ON the system (positive) or done BY the system (negative) — IUPAC convention. …

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