In science, Edgar Buckingham (1867-1940) (CR:5) was an American physicist noted for []
Overview
In 1900, Buckingham published his noted An Outline of the Theory of Thermodynamics, a 200-page book, wherein he attempts to give a simplified synopsis of Willard Gibbs and Pierre Duhem, whom, in his preface, he acknowledges his “great indebtedness and influence”, along the way discussing things such as Humphrey Davy’s ice rubbing experiment, Helmholtz’ free energy descriptions, thermodynamic potentials applied to simple chemical reactions, among others; and was using terms such as “Gibbs energy surface” (see: Gibbs energy).
In 1905, Buckingham stated that term 'classical thermodynamics' had been introduced by French physicist Pierre Duhem, a noted student of German physical chemist and energetics founder Wilhelm Ostwald; about which he explains as follows: [2]
“Aside from these three difficulties [(a) the definition of temperature; (b) the definition of quantity of heat; and (c) the statement of the theorem of Clausius for irreversible processes], the rest of ‘classical thermodynamics’, as Pierre Duhem has named it, seems to be a fairly logical and satisfactory whole.”
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Education
Buckingham completed his BS in physics in 1887 from Harvard, after which he studied at the University of Strasbourg and the University of Leipzig, where he studied under Wilhelm Ostwald, completed his PhD there in 1893, after which, in 1900, he was a professor of physics and physical chemistry at the Bryn Mawr College, Pennsylvania.
Quotes | On
The following are quotes on Buckingham:
“For the person whose ambition is to go further, there is an excellent brief chapter on The Conditions of Thermodynamic Equilibrium, and another on Thermodynamic Potentials and Free Energy. These are preceded by the necessary disquisition on the relations and functions of the indefinitely large number of variables which may be involved, and they are followed by a chapter of applications in which are discussed the electromotive force of a reversible galvanic cell, the equilibrium of phases of a single substance (triple point, etc.), and the phase rule of Gibbs. The discussion of the last subject disclaims the intention of being ‘either complete or rigorous’; but as an introduction ‘'tis enough, 'twill serve.’ There is, probably, no other book so well suited as this to the needs of him who is making preparation for an attempt to explore those tremendous abysses of thought, where reigns that condition of supernal calm known as the Equilibrium of Heterogeneous Substances.”
— Edwin Hall (1902), “Review of Buckingham’s Thermodynamics” [3]
References
1. Buckingham, Edgar. (1900). An Outline of the Theory of Thermodynamics (Ѻ) (pdf) (ice-rubbing, pgs. 13-14). MacMillan Co.
2. Buckingham, Edgar. (1905). “On Certain Difficulties which are Encountered in the Study of Thermodynamics”, (classical thermodynamics, pg. 208), Philosophical Magazine: a Journal of Theoretical, Experimental, and Applied Physics, pgs. 208-13. Taylor & Francis.
3. (a) Buckingham, Edgar. (1900). An Outline of the Theory of Thermodynamics (Ѻ) (pdf) (ice-rubbing, pgs. 13-14). MacMillan Co.
(b) Hall, Edwin. (1902). “Review of Buckingham’s Thermodynamics” (pdf), Bulletin of the American Mathematical Society, 9:173-75.
(b) Edwin Hall – Wikipedia.
External links
● Edgar Buckingham – Wikipedia.
