Based on a university course, this book provides an exposition of a
large spectrum of geological, geochemical and geophysical problems that
are amenable to thermodynamic analysis. It also includes selected
problems in planetary sciences, relationships between thermodynamics and
microscopic properties, particle size effects, methods of approximation
of thermodynamic properties of minerals, and some kinetic ramifications
of entropy production. The textbook will enable graduate students and
researchers alike to develop an appreciation of the fundamental
principles of thermodynamics, and their wide ranging applications to
natural processes and systems.