Toward the Application of the Maximum Entropy Production Principle to a Broader Range of Far From Equilibrium Dissipative Systems

The principle of Maximum Entropy Production (MEP) is being usefully applied to a wide range of non-equilibrium processes including flows in planetary atmospheres and the bioenergetics of photosynthesis. Our goal of applying the principle of maximum entropy production to an even wider range of Far From Equilibrium Dissipative Systems (FFEDS) depends on the reproducibility of the evolution of the system from macro-state A to macro-state B. In an attempt to apply the principle of MEP to astronomical and cosmological structures, we investigate the problematic relationship between gravity and entropy. In the context of open and non-equilibrium systems, we use a generalization of the Gibbs free energy to include the sources of free energy extracted by non-living FFEDS such as hurricanes and convection cells. Redox potential gradients and thermal and pressure gradients provide the free energy for a broad range of FFEDS, both living and non-living. However, these gradients have to be within certain ranges. If the gradients are too weak, FFEDS do not appear. If the gradients are too strong FFEDS disappear. Living and non-living FFEDS often have different source gradients (redox potential gradients vs thermal and pressure gradients) and when they share the same gradient, they exploit different ranges of the gradient. In a preliminary attempt to distinguish living from non-living FFEDS, we investigate the parameter space of: type of gradient and steepness of gradient.