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MotionLab
The absolute ceiling on how efficiently any heat engine can convert thermal energy to work.
The Carnot efficiency sets a hard upper limit dictated by thermodynamics — no heat engine, no matter how cleverly designed, can exceed η = 1 − Tc/Th. Real engines (car engines, power plants) typically achieve 30–60% of this theoretical maximum due to friction, irreversible processes, and heat losses.
The formula shows that efficiency improves when the hot reservoir gets hotter or the cold reservoir gets colder — this is why power plants use superheated steam (high Th) and why rocket engines in the vacuum of space (low effective Tc) can be very efficient.
Efficiency (%)
50
η = 1 − Tc/Th
What you entered
η = 1 − Tc ÷ Th
1 − 300 ÷ 600= 0.5Efficiency percentage
0.5 × 100= 50%COP (refrigerator) = Tc ÷ (Th − Tc)
300 ÷ (600 − 300)= 1Result
Efficiency (%): 50
A Carnot engine between 600 K and 300 K has a maximum efficiency of 50%. As a refrigerator, COP = 1.