With this paper, our main aim is to contribute to the realisation of the chemical reactivity concept, tracing the historical evolution of the concept of chemical affinity that eventually supported the concept of chemical equilibrium. We will concentrate on searching for the theoretical grounds of three key chemical equilibrium ideas: "incomplete…

Analyzes students' misunderstanding of basic thermodynamic concepts on historical grounds. Finds that the persistence of some ideas from the caloric model are reinforced by magnitude names and unit definitions that were brought up at the early stages of thermodynamic development. Explores the failure of many popular textbooks to make a clear…