地球物质科学的基本原理:固体地球科学中的热力学研究历史与展望

Principle of Earth materials:A historical perspective of thermodynamics of the Earth

地球是一种物质和能量结合的存在形式。地球及其他行星的形成和运作过程实际上是物质和能量状态的演化历史。研究物质的科学是物理和化学,描述物质自然规律的语言是数学,这属于热力学的研究范畴。从19世纪中叶开尔文利用热力学理论计算地球年龄开始,热力学在地球科学领域的应用已有100多年历史,它在阐释地球和行星演化过程的基本逻辑与规律方面发挥了核心作用,引起了固体地球科学发展史中的许多重要变革。近20年来,随着物理、化学和计算机科学的不断发展,经典热力学和非平衡热力学在地球物质科学中的应用进一步发展,成为地球物质研究的基本原理体系。通过研究地球物质的形成与演化条件来揭示地球结构、动力学和演化过程的地球热力学学科已经形成。未来地球热力学的发展需要与地球物理、地球化学理论和实验相结合,在热力学数据库发展的基础上,建立合适的热力学模型来解决实际的地球科学问题。另外,地球热力学的进一步发展需要与相应的课程教学相结合、加强热力学在地球科学中的课程建设是当前的一项重要任务。热力学是地球物理、地球化学、地质学等多学科交叉研究的纽带和桥梁。如何从热力学的视角认识地球及其演变过程将会是一个永恒课题。

Earth is a combination of material and energy.The evolution of Earth and planets is a history of the transfer of matter and energy.Materials science is codified into physics and chemistry,while mathematics is the language that describes the law of nature,which belongs to the field of thermodynamics.[Significance]Thus,thermodynamics,consisting of physics,chemistry and mathematics,can unravel the principles of earth materials.Since the middle of the 19th century,Kelvin used thermodynamic theory to calculate the age of the Earth,and thermodynamics has been applied in the field of earth science for more than 100 years,which has provided a vital theoretical framework for understanding the planet′s formation and evolution.Its application revolutionized the development of earth science.[Progress]In the past 20 years,with the development of physics,chemistry and computer science,the application and development of classical thermodynamics and nonequilibrium thermodynamics in earth matter science have further improved and become the fundamental principal system of earth material research.The thermodynamics of earth have been studied to determine the structure,dynamics and evolution of earth by studying the formation and evolution of earth materials.Thermodynamics links geophysics,geochemistry and geology.However,new thermodynamic models,databases,and methods for teaching and learning about thermodynamics in earth science need to be developed.[Conclusions and Prospects]It is foreseeable that understanding the earth and its evolution from the perspective of thermodynamics will be a permanent issue.Thermodynamics will exert its power in unknown fields such as planetary science,earth′s internal evolution as well as earth systems science,driving people to make new observations and theories about nature.