Extended Irreversible Thermodynamics

Classical irreversible thermodynamics, as developed by Onsager, Prigogine and many other authors, is based on the local-equilibrium hypothesis. Out of equilibrium, any system is assumed to depend locally on the same set of variables as when it is in eqUilibrium. This leads to a formal thermody­ namic structure identical to that of eqUilibrium: intensive parameters such as temperature, pressure and...