In: Chemistry
Physical Chemistry
hurricanes form when water vapor at the surface of the ocean(ca. 80 F) exchanges with the high altitude cooler air (ca. -120 F). During the ascent, the coriolis force of the earth creates massively destructive winds. in this sense, the hurricane is a heat engine whose upper bound on efficiency can be estimated from the second law. a typical hurricane condenses about 90 million tons of water per hour
a)Calculate the theoretical maximum efficiency of the hurricane, modeling the hurricane as a carnot engine
b)Modeling the hurricane as carnot engine, use the standard heat of vaporization for water to estimate the power output a hurricane can produce in W