View source for Thermodynamic free energy

{{short description|State function whose change relates to the system's maximal work output}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2023}}
{{Thermodynamics|expanded=Potentials}}

In [[thermodynamics]], the '''thermodynamic free energy''' is one of the [[state function]]s of a [[thermodynamic system]] (the others being [[internal energy]], [[enthalpy]], [[entropy]], etc.). The change in the free energy is the maximum amount of [[Work (thermodynamics)|work]] that the system can perform in a [[Thermodynamic process|process]] at [[Isothermal process|constant temperature]], and its sign indicates whether the process is thermodynamically favorable or forbidden. Since free energy usually contains [[potential energy]], it is not absolute but depends on the choice of a zero point. Therefore, only relative free energy values, or changes in free energy, are physically meaningful.

The free energy is the portion of any [[first law of thermodynamics|first-law]] energy that is '''available''' to perform thermodynamic work at constant temperature, ''i.e.'', work mediated by [[thermal energy]].  Free energy is subject to [[Irreversibility|irreversible]] loss in the course of such work.<ref>Stoner, Clinton D. (2000). Inquiries into the Nature of Free Energy and Entropy in Respect to Biochemical Thermodynamics. ''Entropy Vol. 2.''</ref> Since first-law energy is always conserved, it is evident that free energy is an expendable, [[second law of thermodynamics|second-law]] kind of energy. Several free energy functions may be formulated based on system criteria. Free energy [[function (mathematics)|functions]] are [[Legendre transformation|Legendre transforms]] of the [[internal energy]].

The [[Gibbs free energy]] is given by {{math|1=''G'' = ''H'' − ''TS''}}, where {{mvar|H}} is the [[enthalpy]], {{mvar|T}} is the [[thermodynamic temperature|absolute temperature]], and {{mvar|S}} is the [[entropy]]. {{math|1=''H'' = ''U'' + ''pV''}}, where {{mvar|U}} is the internal energy, {{mvar|p}} is the [[pressure]], and {{mvar|V}} is the volume. {{mvar|G}} is the most useful for [[Thermodynamic process|processes]] involving a system at [[wiktionary:Constant|constant]] [[pressure]] {{mvar|p}} and temperature {{mvar|T}}, because, in addition to subsuming any entropy change due merely to heat, a change in {{mvar|G}} also excludes the {{mvar|p&thinsp;dV}} work needed to "make space for additional molecules" produced by various processes. Gibbs free energy change therefore equals work not associated with system expansion or compression, at constant temperature and pressure, hence its utility to [[Solution (chemistry)|solution]]-[[phase (matter)|phase]] chemists, including biochemists.

The historically earlier [[Helmholtz free energy]] is defined in contrast as {{math|1=''A'' = ''U'' − ''TS''}}.  Its change is equal to the amount of [[reversible process (thermodynamics)|reversible]] work done on, or obtainable from, a system at constant {{mvar|T}}. Thus its appellation "work content", and the designation {{mvar|A}} ({{ety|de|Arbeit|work}}). Since it makes no reference to any quantities involved in work (such as {{mvar|p}} and {{mvar|V}}), the Helmholtz function is completely general: its decrease is the maximum amount of work which can be done ''by'' a system at constant temperature, and it can increase at most by the amount of work done ''on'' a system isothermally. The Helmholtz free energy has a special theoretical importance since it is proportional to the [[logarithm]] of the [[partition function (statistical mechanics)#Relation to thermodynamic variables|partition function]] for the [[canonical ensemble]] in [[statistical mechanics]]. (Hence its utility to [[physicist]]s; and to gas-phase chemists and engineers, who do not want to ignore {{mvar|p&thinsp;dV}} work.)

Historically, the term 'free energy' has been used for either quantity. In [[physics]], ''free energy'' most often refers to the Helmholtz free energy, denoted by {{mvar|A}} (or {{mvar|F}}), while in [[chemistry]], ''free energy'' most often refers to the Gibbs free energy. The values of the two free energies are usually quite similar and the intended free energy function is often implicit in manuscripts and presentations.

== Meaning of "free" ==
The basic definition of "energy" is a measure of a body's (in thermodynamics, the system's) ability to cause change. For example, when a person pushes a heavy box a few metres forward, that person exerts mechanical energy, also known as work, on the box over a distance of a few meters forward. The mathematical definition of this form of energy is the product of the force exerted on the object and the distance by which the box moved ({{nowrap|1=Work = Force × Distance}}). Because the person changed the stationary position of the box, that person exerted energy on that box. The work exerted can also be called "useful energy", because energy was converted from one form into the intended purpose, i.e. mechanical use. For the case of the person pushing the box, the energy in the form of internal (or potential) energy obtained through metabolism was converted into work to push the box. This energy conversion, however, was not straightforward: while some internal energy went into pushing the box, some was diverted away (lost) in the form of heat (transferred thermal energy). 

For a reversible process, heat is the product of the absolute temperature <math>T</math> and the change in entropy <math>S</math> of a body (entropy is a measure of disorder in a system). The difference between the change in internal energy, which is <math>\Delta U</math>, and the energy lost in the form of heat is what is called the "useful energy" of the body, or the work of the body performed on an object. In thermodynamics, this is what is known as "free energy". In other words, free energy is a measure of work (useful energy) a system can perform at constant temperature. 

Mathematically, free energy is expressed as

<math display="block">A=U-TS</math>

This expression has commonly been interpreted to mean that work is extracted from the internal energy <math>U</math> while <math>TS</math> represents energy not available to perform work. However, this is incorrect. For instance, in an isothermal expansion of an ideal gas, the internal energy change is <math>\Delta U=0</math> and the expansion work <math>w=-T\Delta S</math> is derived exclusively from the <math>TS</math> term supposedly not available to perform work. But it is noteworthy that the derivative form of the free energy: <math>dA=-SdT-PdV</math> (for Helmholtz free energy) does indeed indicate that a spontaneous change in a non-reactive system's free energy (NOT the internal energy) comprises the available energy to do work (compression in this case) <math>-PdV</math> and the unavailable energy <math>-SdT</math>.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Osara|first1=Jude A.|last2=Bryant|first2=Michael D.|date=September 2019|title=Thermodynamics of grease degradation|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.triboint.2019.05.020|journal=Tribology International|volume=137|pages=433–445|doi=10.1016/j.triboint.2019.05.020|s2cid=182266032|issn=0301-679X}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Callen|first=Herbert B.|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/651933140|title=Thermodynamics|date=October 1966|publisher=Wiley|isbn=0-471-13035-4|oclc=651933140}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Kondepudi, Dilip, 1952-|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1167078377|title=Modern thermodynamics : from heat engines to dissipative structures|date=1998|publisher=John Wiley|isbn=0-471-97393-9|oclc=1167078377}}</ref> Similar expression can be written for the Gibbs free energy change.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Osara|first1=Jude|last2=Bryant|first2=Michael|date=3 April 2019|title=A Thermodynamic Model for Lithium-Ion Battery Degradation: Application of the Degradation-Entropy Generation Theorem|journal=Inventions|volume=4|issue=2|pages=23|doi=10.3390/inventions4020023|issn=2411-5134|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the [[theory of heat]], i.e., that heat is a form of energy having relation to vibratory motion, was beginning to supplant both the [[caloric theory]], i.e., that heat is a fluid, and the [[four element theory]], in which heat was the lightest of the four elements.  In a similar manner, during these years, heat was beginning to be distinguished into different classification categories, such as "free heat", "combined heat", "radiant heat", [[specific heat]], [[heat capacity]], "absolute heat", "latent caloric", "free" or "perceptible" caloric (''calorique sensible''), among others.

In 1780, for example, [[Laplace]] and [[Lavoisier]] stated: “In general, one can change the first hypothesis into the second by changing the words ‘free heat, combined heat, and heat released’ into ‘[[vis viva]], loss of vis viva, and increase of vis viva.’"  In this manner, the total mass of caloric in a body, called ''absolute heat'', was regarded as a mixture of two components; the free or perceptible caloric could affect a thermometer, whereas the other component, the latent caloric, could not.<ref>{{cite book | last = Mendoza | first = E. | title = Reflections on the Motive Power of Fire – and other Papers on the Second Law of Thermodynamics | editor1-first = E. | editor1-last = Clapeyron | editor2-first = R. | editor2-last = Carnot | publisher = Dover Publications, Inc. | year = 1988 | isbn = 0-486-44641-7}}</ref> The use of the words "latent heat" implied a similarity to latent heat in the more usual sense; it was regarded as chemically ''bound'' to the molecules of the body.  In the [[Adiabatic process|adiabatic]] [[Gas compression|compression]] of a gas, the absolute heat remained constant but the observed rise in temperature implied that some latent caloric had become "free" or perceptible.

During the early 19th century, the concept of perceptible or free caloric began to be referred to as "free heat" or "heat set free".  In 1824, for example, the French physicist [[Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot|Sadi Carnot]], in his famous "[[Reflections on the Motive Power of Fire]]", speaks of quantities of heat ‘absorbed or set free’ in different transformations. In 1882, the German physicist and physiologist [[Hermann von Helmholtz]] coined the phrase ‘free energy’ for the expression <math>A=U-TS</math>, in which the change in ''A'' (or ''G'') determines the amount of energy ‘free’ for [[work (thermodynamics)|work]] under the given conditions, specifically constant temperature.<ref>{{cite book | last = Baierlein | first = Ralph | title = Thermal Physics | publisher = [[Cambridge University Press]] | year = 2003 | isbn = 0-521-65838-1 | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/thermalphysics00ralp }}</ref>{{rp|235}}

Thus, in traditional use, the term "free" was attached to Gibbs free energy for systems at constant pressure and temperature, or to Helmholtz free energy for systems at constant temperature, to mean ‘available in the form of useful work.’<ref name="Perrot" >{{cite book | last = Perrot | first = Pierre | title = A to Z of Thermodynamics | publisher = [[Oxford University Press]] | year = 1998 | isbn = 0-19-856552-6}}</ref> With reference to the Gibbs free energy, we need to add the qualification that it is the energy ''free'' for non-volume work and compositional changes.<ref>{{cite book | last = Reiss | first = Howard | title = Methods of Thermodynamics | publisher = Dover Publications | year = 1965 | isbn = 0-486-69445-3}}</ref>{{rp|77–79}}

An increasing number of books and journal articles do not include the attachment "free", referring to ''G'' as simply Gibbs energy (and likewise for the [[Helmholtz free energy|Helmholtz energy]]). This is the result of a 1988 [[International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry|IUPAC]] meeting to set unified terminologies for the international scientific community, in which the adjective ‘free’ was supposedly banished.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Glossary of Atmospheric Chemistry Terms (Recommendations 1990) |url=http://www.iupac.org/publications/pac/1990/pdf/6211x2167.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.iupac.org/publications/pac/1990/pdf/6211x2167.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live|journal=[[Pure and Applied Chemistry|Pure Appl. Chem.]]|volume=62|pages=2167&ndash;2219|year=1990|last1=[[International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry]] Commission on Atmospheric Chemistry|access-date=28 December 2006|doi=10.1351/pac199062112167|first1=J. G.|issue=11|s2cid=53117465}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=[[International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry]] Commission on Physicochemical Symbols Terminology and Units|title=Quantities, Units and Symbols in Physical Chemistry|publisher=Blackwell Scientific Publications|location=Oxford|year=1993|url=https://archive.org/details/quantitiesunitss0000unse/page/48|isbn=0-632-03583-8|access-date=28 December 2006|pages=[https://archive.org/details/quantitiesunitss0000unse/page/48 48]|edition=2nd}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title=Glossary of Terms in Quantities and Units in Clinical Chemistry (IUPAC-IFCC Recommendations 1996) |url=http://www.iupac.org/publications/pac/1996/pdf/6804x0957.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.iupac.org/publications/pac/1996/pdf/6804x0957.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |journal=[[Pure and Applied Chemistry|Pure Appl. Chem.]] |volume=68 |pages=957–100 0|year=1996 |first1=H. P. |last1=Lehmann |first2=X. |last2=Fuentes-Arderiu |first3=L. F. |last3=Bertello |doi=10.1351/pac199668040957 |issue=4|s2cid=95196393 }}</ref> This standard, however, has not yet been universally adopted, and many published articles and books still include the descriptive ‘free’.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}

==Application==
Just like the general concept of energy, free energy has a few definitions suitable for different conditions. In physics, chemistry, and biology, these conditions are thermodynamic parameters (temperature <math>T</math>, volume <math>V</math>, pressure <math>p</math>, etc.). Scientists have come up with several ways to define free energy. The mathematical expression of Helmholtz free energy is:

:<math>A = U-TS</math>

This definition of free energy is useful for gas-phase reactions or in physics when modeling the behavior of isolated systems kept at a constant volume. For example, if a researcher wanted to perform a combustion reaction in a bomb calorimeter, the volume is kept constant throughout the course of a reaction. Therefore, the heat of the reaction is a direct measure of the free energy change, <math>q=\Delta U</math>. In solution chemistry, on the other hand, most chemical reactions are kept at constant pressure. Under this condition, the heat <math>q</math> of the reaction is equal to the enthalpy change <math>\Delta H</math> of the system. Under constant pressure and temperature, the free energy in a reaction is known as Gibbs free energy <math>G</math>.

:<math>G = H-TS</math>

These functions have a minimum in chemical equilibrium, as long as certain variables (<math>T</math>, and <math>V</math> or <math>p</math>) are held constant. In addition, they also have theoretical importance in deriving [[Maxwell relations]]. Work other than {{nowrap|''p&thinsp;dV''}} may be added, e.g., for [[electrochemistry|electrochemical]] cells, or {{nowrap|''f&thinsp;dx''}} work in [[elastomer|elastic]] materials and in [[muscle]] contraction. Other forms of work which must sometimes be considered are [[stress (physics)|stress]]-[[strain (materials science)|strain]], [[magnetism|magnetic]], as in [[adiabatic process|adiabatic]] de[[magnetization]] used in the approach to [[absolute zero]], and work due to electric [[dipole|polarization]]. These are described by [[tensor]]s.

In most cases of interest there are internal [[degrees of freedom (physics and chemistry)|degrees of freedom]] and processes, such as [[chemical reaction]]s and [[phase transition]]s, which create entropy. Even for homogeneous "bulk" materials, the free energy functions depend on the (often suppressed) [[chemical compound|composition]], as do all proper [[thermodynamic potentials]] ([[extensive quantity|extensive functions]]), including the internal energy.
{{table of thermodynamic potentials|noU=1|noH=1|noO=1}}
<math>N_i</math> is the number of molecules (alternatively, [[mole (unit)|moles]]) of type <math>i</math> in the system. If these quantities do not appear, it is impossible to describe compositional changes. The [[differential (infinitesimal)|differential]]s for processes at uniform pressure and temperature are (assuming only <math>pV</math> work):

:<math>\mathrm dA = - p\,\mathrm dV - S\,\mathrm dT + \sum_i \mu_i \,\mathrm dN_i\,</math>

:<math>\mathrm dG = V\,\mathrm dp - S\,\mathrm dT + \sum_i \mu_i \,\mathrm dN_i\,</math>

where ''μ''<sub>''i''</sub> is the [[chemical potential]] for the ''i''th [[component (thermodynamics)|component]] in the system. The second relation is especially useful at constant <math>T</math> and <math>p</math>, conditions which are easy to achieve experimentally, and which approximately characterize [[life|living]] creatures. Under these conditions, it simplifies to

:<math>(\mathrm dG)_{T,p} = \sum_i \mu_i \,\mathrm dN_i\,</math>

Any decrease in the Gibbs function of a system is the upper limit for any [[isothermal process|isothermal]], [[isobaric process|isobaric]] work that can be captured in the surroundings, or it may simply be [[dissipation|dissipated]], appearing as <math>T</math> times a corresponding increase in the entropy of the system and/or its surrounding.

An example is [[surface free energy]], the amount of increase of free energy when the area of surface increases by every unit area.

The [[path integral Monte Carlo]] method is a numerical approach for determining the values of free energies, based on quantum dynamical principles.

===Work and free energy change===
For a reversible isothermal process, Δ''S'' = ''q''<sub>rev</sub>/''T'' and therefore the definition of ''A'' results in

: <math>\Delta A = \Delta U - T \Delta S = \Delta U - q_\text{rev} = w_\text{rev}</math> (at constant temperature)

This tells us that the change in free energy equals the reversible or maximum work for a process performed at constant temperature. Under other conditions, free-energy change is not equal to work; for instance, for a reversible adiabatic expansion of an ideal gas, {{nowrap|<math>\Delta A = w_\text{rev} - S \Delta T</math>.}} Importantly, for a heat engine, including the [[Carnot cycle]], the free-energy change after a full cycle is zero, {{nowrap|<math>\Delta_\text{cyc} A = 0 </math>,}} while the engine produces nonzero work. It is important to note that for heat engines and other thermal systems, the free energies do not offer convenient characterizations; internal energy and enthalpy are the preferred potentials for characterizing thermal systems.

===Free energy change and spontaneous processes===
According to the [[second law of thermodynamics]], for any process that occurs in a closed system, the [[Clausius theorem|inequality of Clausius]], Δ''S'' > ''q''/''T''<sub>surr</sub>, applies. For a process at constant temperature and pressure without non-''PV'' work, this inequality transforms into <math>\Delta G < 0 </math>. Similarly, for a process at constant temperature and volume, <math>\Delta A < 0 </math>. Thus, a negative value of the change in free energy is a necessary condition for a process to be spontaneous; this is the most useful form of the second law of thermodynamics in chemistry. In chemical equilibrium at constant ''T'' and ''p'' without electrical work, d''G'' = 0.

== History ==
The quantity called "free energy" is a more advanced and accurate replacement for the outdated term ''affinity'', which was used by chemists in previous years to describe the ''force'' that caused [[chemical reaction]]s.  The term affinity, as used in chemical relation, dates back to at least the time of [[Albertus Magnus]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Quilez |first1=Juan |title=A historical/epistemological account of the foundation of the key ideas supporting chemical equilibrium theory |journal=Foundations of Chemistry |date=July 2019 |volume=21 |issue=2 |page=223 |doi=10.1007/s10698-018-9320-0 |s2cid=102566121 |url=https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=22417_vcpl&id=GALE%7CA592081896&v=2.1&it=r&sid=ebsco |access-date=2 November 2021}}</ref>

From the 1998 textbook ''Modern Thermodynamics''<ref name="Prigogine" >{{cite book| last1 = Kondepudi | first1 = Dilip |author2-link=Ilya Pregogine |last2=Prigogine|first2= Ilya | title = Modern Thermodynamics | url = https://archive.org/details/modernthermodyna0000kond | url-access = registration | publisher = John Wiley & Sons Ltd | year = 1998 | isbn = 978-0-471-97394-2}}  Chapter 4, Section 1, Paragraph 2 (page 103)</ref> by Nobel Laureate and chemistry professor [[Ilya Prigogine]] we find: "As motion was explained by the Newtonian concept of force, chemists wanted a similar concept of ‘driving force’ for chemical change.  Why do chemical reactions occur, and why do they stop at certain points?  Chemists called the ‘force’ that caused chemical reactions affinity, but it lacked a clear definition."

During the entire 18th century, the dominant view with regard to heat and light was that put forth by [[Isaac Newton]], called the ''Newtonian hypothesis'', which states that light and heat are forms of matter attracted or repelled by other forms of matter, with forces analogous to gravitation or to chemical affinity.

In the 19th century, the French chemist [[Marcellin Berthelot]] and the Danish chemist [[Julius Thomsen]] had attempted to quantify affinity using [[heat of reaction|heats of reaction]].  In 1875, after quantifying the heats of reaction for a large number of compounds, Berthelot proposed the ''[[principle of maximum work]]'', in which all chemical changes occurring without intervention of outside energy tend toward the production of bodies or of a system of bodies which liberate heat.

In addition to this, in 1780 [[Antoine Lavoisier]] and [[Pierre-Simon Laplace]] laid the foundations of [[thermochemistry]] by showing that the heat given out in a reaction is equal to the heat absorbed in the reverse reaction.  They also investigated the [[specific heat]] and [[latent heat]] of a number of substances, and amounts of heat given out in combustion.  In a similar manner, in 1840 Swiss chemist [[Germain Hess]] formulated the principle that the evolution of heat in a reaction is the same whether the process is accomplished in one-step process or in a number of stages.  This is known as [[Hess' law]].  With the advent of the [[mechanical theory of heat]] in the early 19th century, Hess's law came to be viewed as a consequence of the law of [[conservation of energy]].

Based on these and other ideas, Berthelot and Thomsen, as well as others, considered the heat given out in the formation of a compound as a measure of the affinity, or the work done by the chemical forces.  This view, however, was not entirely correct.  In 1847, the English physicist [[James Joule]] showed that he could raise the temperature of water by turning a paddle wheel in it, thus showing that heat and mechanical work were equivalent or proportional to each other, i.e., approximately, {{nowrap|''dW'' ∝ ''dQ''}}. This statement came to be known as the [[mechanical equivalent of heat]] and was a precursory form of the [[first law of thermodynamics]].

By 1865, the German physicist [[Rudolf Clausius]] had shown that this [[equivalence principle]] needed amendment.  That is, one can use the heat derived from a [[combustion reaction]] in a coal furnace to boil water, and use this heat to vaporize steam, and then use the enhanced high-pressure energy of the vaporized steam to push a piston.  Thus, we might naively reason that one can entirely convert the initial combustion heat of the chemical reaction into the work of pushing the piston.  Clausius showed, however, that we must take into account the work that the molecules of the working body, i.e., the water molecules in the cylinder, do on each other as they pass or transform from one step of or [[thermodynamic state|state]] of the [[engine cycle]] to the next, e.g., from (<math>P_1,V_1</math>) to (<math>P_2,V_2</math>).  Clausius originally called this the "transformation content" of the body, and then later changed the name to [[entropy]].  Thus, the heat used to transform the working body of molecules from one state to the next cannot be used to do external work, e.g., to push the piston.  Clausius defined this ''transformation heat'' as <math>dQ=TdS</math>.

In 1873, [[Willard Gibbs]] published ''A Method of Geometrical Representation of the Thermodynamic Properties of Substances by Means of Surfaces'', in which he introduced the preliminary outline of the principles of his new equation able to predict or estimate the tendencies of various natural processes to ensue when bodies or systems are brought into contact.  By studying the interactions of homogeneous substances in contact, i.e., bodies, being in composition part solid, part liquid, and part vapor, and by using a three-dimensional [[Volume (thermodynamics)|volume]]-[[entropy]]-[[internal energy]] graph, Gibbs was able to determine three states of equilibrium, i.e., "necessarily stable", "neutral", and "unstable", and whether or not changes will ensue.  In 1876, Gibbs built on this framework by introducing the concept of [[chemical potential]] so to take into account chemical reactions and states of bodies that are chemically different from each other.  In his own words, to summarize his results in 1873, Gibbs states:

{{quote|1=
If we wish to express in a single equation the necessary and sufficient condition of [[thermodynamic equilibrium]] for a substance when surrounded by a medium of constant [[pressure]] ''p'' and temperature ''T'', this equation may be written:

{{block indent|{{nowrap|1=''δ''(''ε'' − ''Tη'' + ''pν'') = 0}}}}

when ''δ'' refers to the variation produced by any variations in the [[thermodynamic state|state]] of the parts of the body, and (when different parts of the body are in different states) in the proportion in which the body is divided between the different states.  The condition of stable equilibrium is that the value of the expression in the parenthesis shall be a minimum. 
}}

In this description, as used by Gibbs, ''ε'' refers to the [[internal energy]] of the body, ''η'' refers to the [[entropy]] of the body, and ''ν'' is the [[Volume (thermodynamics)|volume]] of the body.

Hence, in 1882, after the introduction of these arguments by Clausius and Gibbs, the German scientist [[Hermann von Helmholtz]] stated, in opposition to Berthelot and Thomas' hypothesis that chemical affinity is a measure of the heat of reaction of chemical reaction as based on the principle of maximal work, that affinity is not the heat given out in the formation of a compound but rather it is the largest quantity of work which can be gained when the reaction is carried out in a reversible manner, e.g., electrical work in a reversible cell.  The maximum work is thus regarded as the diminution of the free, or available, energy of the system ([[Gibbs free energy]] ''G'' at ''T'' = constant, ''P'' = constant or [[Helmholtz free energy]] ''A'' at ''T'' = constant, ''V'' = constant), whilst the heat given out is usually a measure of the diminution of the total energy of the system ([[Internal energy]]).  Thus, ''G'' or ''A'' is the amount of energy "free" for work under the given conditions.

Up until this point, the general view had been such that: “all chemical reactions drive the system to a state of equilibrium in which the affinities of the reactions vanish”.  Over the next 60 years, the term affinity came to be replaced with the term free energy.  According to chemistry historian Henry Leicester, the influential 1923 textbook ''Thermodynamics and the Free Energy of Chemical Reactions'' by [[Gilbert N. Lewis]] and [[Merle Randall]] led to the replacement of the term "affinity" by the term "free energy" in much of the English-speaking world.

==See also==
*[[Energy]]
*[[Exergy]]
*[[Merle Randall]]
*[[Second law of thermodynamics]]
*[[Superconductivity]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thermodynamic Free Energy}}
[[Category:Thermodynamic free energy| ]]
[[Category:Energy (physics)]]
[[Category:State functions]]