Physical Transformation AtlasPTA
Pathway · p-733dd1d4aa · weakly supported

Temperature gradient → Electrical work

Temperature gradientMarangoni effectPressure gradientStreaming potentialIonic currentElectrical work

Epistemic state of the route

known constituent relations
4 / 5 established or replicated · weakest constituent theoretically predicted
constituent maturity floor
K3 · theoretically quantified
search for this exact route
Not assessed — complete composition not searched.
recorded-pathway overlap
shares its closing relations with Electrokinetic microchannel generator · 3/5 relations shared
route-level evidence
0 sources for the complete composition · 7 cited by the constituent steps
boundaries and interfaces
BOUNDARY compatible · no region transition

Explorematrix context · physics checks · steps · route evidence · constituent evidence · cite

Matrix context

D = disequilibrium row · C = coupling family column. A cell reads the state of the atlas for that pair.

D.01 × C.34 · Temperature gradient × Marangonifamily: MarangoniD.01 × C.23 · Temperature gradient × Electrokineticfamily: Electrokinetic

Typed bounds on this route

Every limit the atlas holds for this route, as constraint records: reached through bounded_by claims on the route's own entities. Hard bounds (an upper bound or a formula) decide the thermodynamic-bound check above; benchmarks, constitutive relations and resource limits are listed and never decisive. No prose limit exists anywhere (pass 42).

  • Carnot limit · formula-bound · hard, applies to this route
    η ≤ 1 − T_c/T_h for any heat engine between reservoirs at T_h and T_c
  • Onsager–Casimir reciprocity · constitutive-relation · listed, never decisive
    L_ij(B) = ε_i ε_j L_ji(−B): the cross-coefficients of coupled linear transport are equal up to the time-reversal parities ε of the variables and reversal of the magnetic field; L_ij = L_ji is the zero-field, even-parity case

Steps

  1. 01
    thermal → kinetic · loss to thermal
    • thermocapillary case: surface tension falls with temperature, so a temperature gradient along the interface drives flow toward the cold side
    liquid · temperature gradient required
    refs [1] [2]
  2. 02
    Marangoni effect —produces→ Pressure gradienttheoretically predictedclaim record
    kinetic → mechanical · loss to thermal
    • a thermocapillary-driven liquid plug moves in a closed-ended microchannel and compresses the trapped gas; the pressure rise is the load presented to the compliant membrane
    Kept below demonstrated: the Odukoya device measured heater and droplet behaviour, while the pressure field feeding the membrane (about 0.1 kPa for a 13 μm deflection in the model) comes from the force balance, not a measurement.
    refs [3] [4]
  3. 03
    mechanical → electrical · loss to thermal
    • electrolyte forced through a channel with charged walls; efficiency peaks when the Debye length is comparable to the channel width
    aqueous medium required · bulk flow required
    refs [5] [6]
  4. 04
    electrical → electrical
    refs [5] [6]
  5. 05
    Ionic current —converts into→ Electrical workestablishedclaim record
    electrical → electrical · loss to thermal
    • electrodes exchange the ionic current for an electronic current through the external load
    refs [7]

Evidence for the complete composition · 0

No source on record for this exact composition. The sources below support the individual steps, not the route as a whole.

Evidence for the constituent relations · 7

  1. [1]
    L. E. Scriven, C. V. Sternling. The Marangoni Effects (1960)
    Nature 187, 186-188 · doi:10.1038/187186a0 · crossref ✓ 2026-09-20 · record
  2. [2]
    Q. Dai et al.. Directional interfacial motion of liquids: Fundamentals, evaluations, and manipulation strategies (2021)
    Tribology International 154, 106749 · doi:10.1016/j.triboint.2020.106749 · crossref ✓ 2026-09-20 · record
  3. [3]
    P. S. Glockner, G. F. Naterer. Surface tension and frictional resistance of thermocapillary pumping in a closed microchannel (2006)
    International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer 49(23–24), 4424–4436 · doi:10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2006.05.005 · record
  4. [4]
    A. Odukoya, G. F. Naterer. Transient response of thermocapillary pumping of a droplet in a micro heat engine (2013)
    International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer 58, 202–212 · doi:10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2012.11.009 · record
  5. [5]
    J. Yang et al.. Electrokinetic microchannel battery by means of electrokinetic and microfluidic phenomena (2003)
    Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering 13, 963 · doi:10.1088/0960-1317/13/6/320 · crossref ✓ 2026-09-19 · record
  6. [6]
    R. J. Hunter. Zeta Potential in Colloid Science: Principles and Applications (1981)
    Academic Press · doi:10.1016/C2013-0-07389-6 · crossref ✓ 2026-09-19 · record
  7. [7]
    A. J. Bard, L. R. Faulkner. Electrochemical Methods: Fundamentals and Applications (2nd ed.) (2001)
    Wiley · book, no DOI · record

Cite this route

Physical Transformation Atlas (2026). route p-733dd1d4aa: Temperature gradient → Marangoni effect → Pressure gradient → Streaming potential → Ionic current → Electrical work. Dataset revision rbfbfcbb70e57 (hash of the canonical data). https://physical-transformation-atlas.wldud5192.workers.dev/path/733dd1d4aa

Ids and matrix addresses are stable across revisions; the revision hash identifies the exact canonical files the record was compiled from and is meta.data_hash in every /api export. Reuse terms: see the license field in any export.