Climate Physics: Classical Thermodynamics Applied to Greenhouse Gas and Climate Change Hypotheses

Abstract

Using the Gibbs concept of state functions to define the first and second laws of thermodynamics, we analyse the effects of changes in atmospheric average temperatures and pressures arising from anthropogenic emissions of enthalpy and water, besides CO 2 , into the atmosphere. An application of the Hess-Gibbs 1 st law of thermodynamic equilibrium (H is a state function) shows that the enthalpy (H) output from fossil fuel consumption is seven times greater than the H-increase of the mean global warming index (GWI), presently 0.0175 K/year, that has given rise to the greenhouse gas hypothesis (GGH). The Joule-Mayer 1 st law of irreversible thermodynamics (conservation of energy) shows there is a level of inherent uncertainty, in any multivariate computer model of the global energy budget, which is more than 1000 times the experimental enthalpy flux associated with the GGH. The Carnot-Gibbs 2 nd law of thermodynamic equilibrium: entropy and Gibbs energy of water are state functions if its concentration is a well-defined state variable. Here, this concept is used to assess the effect of water vapour output from fossil fuels on climate-change hypotheses (CCH): we report that an anthropogenic global wetting effect of fossil fuels is not negligible. We assess the global effects of endothermic photosynthesis processes in the biospheres land and ocean sinks which, in accord with Le Chatellier principle of Gibbs chemical equilibrium, are enhanced by the anthropogenic increases in both [CO 2 ] and [H 2 O] in the atmosphere. Whereas the long-term effect of the ocean sink may be negligible due to its massive heat capacity, we report evidence of an endothermic effect upon biosphere land areas, which offsets the enthalpy output from the energy industry to a significant extent.