What is Thermodynamics?

Thermodynamics is a branch of physics that studies the effects of changes in temperature, pressure, and volume on physical systems at the macroscopic scale by analyzing the collective motion of their particles using statistics.
In our day-to-day lives we come across various conversions of energy from one form to the other. For instance in vehicles, the chemical energy of fuel is converted into mechanical energy of the vehicle, in motor electrical energy is converted into mechanical energy, in hydro power plants the hydraulic energy water is converted into electrical energy, in nuclear power plants the nuclear energy is converted into electrical energy etc. We also come across applications like solar water heater and solar cooker in which solar energy is converted into heat energy. By its sheer intelligence mankind has learnt converting energy provided by the nature from one form to the other as per their requirements and convenience.

The branch of science (physics) that studies conversion of energy from one form to the other is called as thermodynamics. Thermodynamics is a very important subject studied under the branch of Mechanical Engineering. Various conversions of energy are possible, like chemical to heat, heat to mechanical, hydraulic to electrical or mechanical, etc. Almost all the energies can be converted from one form to the other form.