Here is a new (maybe trivial) question for all you thermodynamics buffs.
Our building just got the heat turned on. Unfortunately, due to recent
construction, none of the thermostats are working, so it's getting very
hot. My colleague in the next office can't open his window, so he is
cooling the room by running his air conditioner. Now the textbook air
conditioners remove "Qc" from indoors and exhaust "Qh" outdoors. Trouble
is the temperatures are Th = 50 and Tc = 80. What happens in this case?
Does the air conditioner generate electricity rather than consume it?
--
Martha Takats
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Ursinus College
Collegeville, PA 19426