Compressibility

In thermodynamics and fluid mechanics, the compressibility (also known as the coefficient of compressibility[1] or, if the temperature is held constant, the isothermal compressibility[2]) is a measure of the instantaneous relative volume change of a fluid or solid as a response to a pressure (or mean stress) change. In its simple form, the compressibility (denoted β in some fields) may be expressed as

,

where V is volume and p is pressure. The choice to define compressibility as the negative of the fraction makes compressibility positive in the (usual) case that an increase in pressure induces a reduction in volume. The reciprocal of compressibility at fixed temperature is called the isothermal bulk modulus.

  1. ^ "Coefficient of compressibility - AMS Glossary". Glossary.AMetSoc.org. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  2. ^ "Isothermal compressibility of gases -". Petrowiki.org. 3 June 2015. Retrieved 3 May 2017.