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The chemical composition of the earths atmosphere far from equilibrium isunique in the solar system and has been attributed to the presence ofwidespread life. Here I show that this perspective can be quantified usingnon-equilibrium thermodynamics. Generating disequilibrium in a thermodynamicvariable requires the extraction of power from another thermodynamic gradient,and the second law of thermodynamics imposes fundamental limits on how muchpower can be extracted. When applied to complex earth system processes, whereseveral irreversible processes compete to deplete the same gradients, it iseasily shown that the maximum thermodynamic efficiency is much less than theclassic Carnot limit, so that the ability of the earth system to generate powerand disequilibrium is limited. This approach is used to quantify how much freeenergy is generated by various earth system processes to generate chemicaldisequilibrium. It is shown that surface life generates orders of magnitudemore chemical free energy than any abiotic surface process, therefore being theprimary driving force for shaping the geochemical environment at the planetaryscale. To apply this perspective to the possible future of the planet, we firstnote that the free energy consumption by human activity is a considerable termin the free energy budget of the planet, and that global changes are closelyrelated to this consumption of free energy. Since human activity and demandsfor free energy is going to increase in the future, the central question is howhuman free energy demands can increase sustainably without negatively impactingthe ability of the earth system to generate free energy. I illustrate theimplications of this thermodynamic perspective by discussing the forms ofrenewable energy and planetary engineering that would enhance overall freeenergy generation and thereby "empower" the future of the planet.

philosophical transactions - royal society. mathematical, physical and engineering sciences/philosophical transactions - royal society. mathematical, physical and engineering sciences

How does the earth system generate and maintain thermodynamic disequilibrium and what does it imply for the future of the planet?