This is true, if we were able to build a 100% efficient heat engine (which itself is theoretically impossible), then any heat we put into the engine could be used to do work.wakejosh said:my TA in my physics class told us that if there was a perfect engine powered by heat (100% efficent) then the mechanical energy generated by the engine would be the same as the amount of heat energy used by the engine. I am not sure what he is getting at here, or trying to say by this, but is this even accurate?
Following on what Hootenanny said, which is quite correct, I would prefer to say that this statement is not accurate. A perfect heat engine can not be 100% efficient. It can, at most be Th-Tc/Th efficient where Tc and Th are the temperatures that it operates between.wakejosh said:my TA in my physics class told us that if there was a perfect engine powered by heat (100% efficent) then the mechanical energy generated by the engine would be the same as the amount of heat energy used by the engine. I am not sure what he is getting at here, or trying to say by this, but is this even accurate?