Abstract
A formulation of the kinetic theory of dilute, classical polyatomic gases is given which parallels the Waldmann development for structureless molecules. In the first section the Boltzmann equation is written in terms of the specific rates of inelastic collision processes and then the properties of these rates and those of the corresponding collision cross sections are examined. The dependence of the distribution function on the dynamical variables is discussed and the equations of change for the gas are derived. Finally, a study is made of the properties of the linearized Boltzmann collision operation. In the second section the Boltzmann equation is deduced from a rigorous statistical-mechanical point of view and discussed in terms of the basic ideas of Bogoliubov. The computationally important special case of impulsive interactions is then considered.
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This research was supported in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation and in part by the Ames Laboratory of the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission. Contribution No. 2554.
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Hoffman, D.K., Dahler, J.S. The Boltzmann equation for a polyatomic gas. J Stat Phys 1, 521–558 (1969). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01024129
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01024129
Key words
- Boltzmann equation for polyatomic gases
- transition rates for polyatomic molecules
- differential cross sections for polyatomic molecules
- free-flight invariants
- symmetries of collision operator
- external field effects on gas transport and relaxation
- time scales (for evolution of statistical ensembles)
- Liouville equation (for polyatomic gases)
- collision integrals