The principle of minimal resistance in non-equilibrium thermodynamics (Q266248)

Using various assumptions, a dynamical principle is stated in accordance of which a dissipative system, during its evolution, tends to minimize its energy dissipation in such a manner to maintain its Hamiltonian time rate constant, that is to say the difference between the flux-based and the force-based Raleigh dissipation functions. As an application, it is shown that the Fokker-Planck-Kolmogorov equation can be thought of as the Hamilton-Jacobi equation derived from this minimum principle.