| Abstract Scope |
Phase-field method is a density-based approach for simulating the temporal microstructure and property evolution in materials undergoing nonequilibrium processes. The focus of the presentation will be on discussing its thermodynamics basis. It will start with introducing a modern version of the first law of thermodynamics and the corresponding fundamental equation of thermodynamics, which allows us to identity the independent thermodynamic variables, the driving forces for phase evolution and other materials processes, and the connections to the properties of nonequilibrium systems. It will be followed by a discussion on the thermodynamics of microstructures involving long-range elastic, electrostatic, and magnetic interactions and the short-range chemical interactions responsible for interfacial energy. It will be demonstrated that all familiar partial differential equations describing the relaxational or dynamical, thermal, mechanical, chemical, and electronic processes and the accompanying microstructure evolution can be derived from the rate of potential energy dissipation based on linear or nonlinear kinetics. |