- #1
beefbrisket
- 6
- 0
My text (Ian Ford - Statistical physics) describes an ideal gas system in a piston being quasistatically compressed by a piston head of area [itex]A[/itex] under external force [itex]f[/itex]. It assumes the system has a uniform pressure [itex]p[/itex]. All good so far. Then it says: "the force [itex]pA[/itex] equals the applied external force [itex]f[/itex]" on its way to showing [itex]\text{d}W = -p\text{d}V[/itex]. I have some feeling that this seems sound but I cannot explain why. Is this just a good approximation we make due to the quasistatic nature of the compression or some other reason? I think they cannot exactly equal otherwise there would be no work done due to zero net force.