Steady state thermodynamics (Q863500)

This paper proposes a thermodynamic formalism for nonequilibrium steady states in order to give a guide for constructing statistical mechanics of them in the future. Here steady states are those states which have no macroscopically observable time dependence. The outline of the argument is: 1. Concentrate on some typical examples of nonequilibrium steady states of non local-equilibrium nature such as a heat conducting fluid, a sheared fluid, and an electrically conducting fluid. 2. Examine carefully how the basic notions of thermodynamics should be modified. 3. Define every thermodynamic quantity through a purely operational procedure. 4. Make concrete predictions which may be checked experimentally. \noindent The formalism for certain idealized theoretical models are demonstrated in appendices. This work is motivated by \textit{Y. Oono} and \textit{M. Paniconi} [Prog. Theor. Phys. Suppl. 130, 29--44 (1998; Zbl 0971.80001)], but as a result there are no direct logical connections between them.