Topics and material to read for the Physical Chemistry Oral Exam
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2. Work, heat, and internal energy; their measurability.

3. Postulates of thermodynamics.

4. Reversibility and irreversibility. Thermodynamic state functions.

5. Conditions of the thermodynamic equilibrium for mechanical, thermal and chemical interactions.

6. Fundamental equations in terms of S and U.

7. Equilibrium in thermostatted, manostatted, and thermostatted & manostatted systems.
Definition of H, F and G functions and their role in the description of constrained equilibria.

8. Properties of the U(S,V,n_i), H(S,p,n_i), F(T,V,n_i) and G(T,p,n_i) functions
and their partial derivatives. Formal relations between these functions.

9. Equations of state and state functions.

10. Thermodynamic properties of an ideal gas. (Its state functions and heat capacities).

11. Real gases. Van der Waals and virial equations of state. Liquids and solids; their equations of state.

12. Cyclic processes and engines. Work, heat and performance parameters calculated from thermodynamic tables and diagrams.

13. Ideal mixtures. Chemical potentials in an ideal mixture.

14. Partial molar quantities and their calculation from experiment.

15. Non-ideal mixtures; their thermodynamic properties. Excess functions.

16. Chemical potentials, fugacity and activity.

17. Phase equilibrium in one-component systems. Phase diagrams. Coexistence conditions.
The Clausius-Clapeyron equation.

18. Phase equilibrium in multicomponent systems. The Gibbs phase rule. Miscibility ranges.

19. Binary systems' phase diagrams (liquid-vapour and solid-liquid).

20. Distillation and fractional crystallisation. The lever rule.

21. Colligative properties: phase equilibrium between a pure phase and a mixture phase.

22. Ternary systems' phase diagrams. A lookout to more complex phase diagrams.

23 Surface tension and associated thermodynamic potentials.

24. Capillary forces and vapour pressures of curved surfaces.

25. Chemical equilibrium in homogeneous phases. Different kinds of equilibrium constants.

26. Variation of the equilibrium constant with temperature and pressure.

27. The Gibbs-Helmholtz and van't Hoff equations.

28. Calculation of the equilibrium constant from thermodynamic data.

29. General transport equations.

30. Kinetic theory of gases. Collision number and mean free path.

31. Diffusion.

32. Viscosity.

33. Electrolytic dissociation equlibria. The principle of electroneutrality.

34. The Born equation. Gibbs potential of charged particles (ions). Gibbs potential of solvation.

35. Activity and mean activity in ionic solutions.

36. The limiting law of Debye and Hückel for the mean activity coefficient.

37. Electrochemical equilibrium. Thermodynamic description of electrochemical cells.

38. Potential of the cell reaction, and measurable cell potentials.

39. Electrodes and electrode potentials. Types of electrodes. Ion-selective electrodes, p_H.

40. Charge transport by ions. Mobility and diffusion of ions. Diffusion potential.
 

Material to read concerning the above topics