Carnot Engine Simulation
Ideal heat-engine cycle and efficiency limit
Carnot efficiency sets the ideal upper bound for any heat engine operating between two temperatures.
What Is Carnot Engine?
Carnot Engine refers to ideal heat-engine cycle and efficiency limit in thermodynamics. This page visualizes the phenomenon with interactive controls so you can change parameters and observe how the model responds.
What To Observe
- Watch how the visual pattern or system response changes as you adjust the controls for Carnot Engine.
- Relate each visual change to the core phenomenon shown here: ideal heat-engine cycle and efficiency limit.
- Use repeated runs with one parameter changed at a time to build intuition.
Related Simulations
Ideal Gas Law Particle box and piston illustrating PV = nRT Brownian Motion Random walk from microscopic collisions Heat Conduction Temperature diffusion through a rod Entropy Visualization Mixing and multiplicity as a visual entropy proxy Phase Transitions Heating curve with melting and boiling plateaus Bernoulli's Principle Speed-pressure tradeoff in ideal fluid flow Laminar vs Turbulent Flow Ordered flow transitioning toward turbulent mixing Venturi Effect Throat acceleration and pressure drop in a constriction Convection Cells Buoyancy-driven circulation from heated boundaries Thermal Expansion Linear expansion of solids with temperature Archimedes' Principle Buoyancy from displaced fluid weight Maxwell-Boltzmann Gas particle speed distribution
Try These Experiments
- Start with default settings, then change one slider at a time.
- Record what increases, decreases, or becomes unstable as parameters vary.
- Use screenshots or notes to compare patterns between runs.
Real-World Applications
- Thermodynamics lessons and classroom demonstrations
- Self-study and concept reinforcement
- Interactive support for STEM presentations