Gibbs equation in the nonlinear nonequilibrium thermodynamics of dilute nonviscous gases

This paper deals with the derivation of the Gibbs equation for a nonviscous gas in the presence of heat flux. The analysis aims to shed some light on the physical interpretation of thermodynamic potentials far from equilibrium. Two different definitions for the chemical potential and thermodynamic pressure far from equilibrium are introduced: nonequilibrium chemical potential and nonequilibrium thermodynamic pressure at constant heat flux q and nonequilibrium chemical potential and nonequilibrium thermodynamic pressure at constant J = Vq, where V is the specific volume. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.