Entropy of fusion

A natural process such as a phase transition will occur when the associated change in the Gibbs free energy is negative.

${\displaystyle \Delta G_{\text{fus}}=\Delta H_{\text{fus}}-T\times \Delta S_{\text{fus}}<0,}$

where ‍${\displaystyle \Delta H_{\text{fus}}}$‍ is the enthalpy of fusion. Since this is a thermodynamic equation, the symbol ‍${\displaystyle T}$‍ refers to the absolute thermodynamic temperature, measured in kelvins (K).

Equilibrium occurs when the temperature is equal to the melting point ${\displaystyle T=T_{f}}$ so that

${\displaystyle \Delta G_{\text{fus}}=\Delta H_{\text{fus}}-T_{f}\times \Delta S_{\text{fus}}=0,}$

and the entropy of fusion is the heat of fusion divided by the melting point:

${\displaystyle \Delta S_{\text{fus}}={\frac {\Delta H_{\text{fus}}}{T_{f}}}}$

• 1 Helium
• 2 See also
• 3 Notes
• 4 References

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