Conventions
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Published:17 May 2024
Concepts in Physical Chemistry, Royal Society of Chemistry, 2nd edn, 2024, pp. P007-P008.
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The conventions adopted in the entries include the following:
| ln x | Natural logarithm of x (base e) |
| log x | Common logarithm of x (base 10) |
| X ⦵ | The standard-state value of the property X |
| b ⦵ | 1 mol kg−1 exactly |
| c ⦵ | 1 mol dm−3 exactly |
| p ⦵ | 1 bar exactly |
| = | An exact (defined) numerical value |
| ≈ | A derived or empirical numerical value |
| A quantity X expressed as a wavenumber (so the corresponding energy is ) |
| ln x | Natural logarithm of x (base e) |
| log x | Common logarithm of x (base 10) |
| X ⦵ | The standard-state value of the property X |
| b ⦵ | 1 mol kg−1 exactly |
| c ⦵ | 1 mol dm−3 exactly |
| p ⦵ | 1 bar exactly |
| = | An exact (defined) numerical value |
| ≈ | A derived or empirical numerical value |
| A quantity X expressed as a wavenumber (so the corresponding energy is ) |
Many expressions in thermodynamics have the form , where J is a substance. This expression has the same form as a scalar product of the vectors n = {nA, nB, …} and X = {XA, XB, …}. Therefore, it is possible to simplify the appearance of many expressions by replacing the sum by . This alternative is provided as well as the conventional form.
A stoichiometric coefficient is a positive number; a stoichiometric number is a signed number, positive for products and negative for reactants. Both are dimensionless.
In accord with established convention, physical quantities are represented by oblique Greek or Roman symbols; labels, units, and mathematical constants are represented by upright Greek or Roman symbols.
Note that this book is a collection of concepts; only rarely does it include physical data. For the values of fundamental constants, see the Resource Section and the relevant entries.
