Fluctuating Multiscale Mass Action Law

Abstract

The classical mass action law in chemical kinetics is put into the context of multiscale thermodynamics.Despite the purely dissipative character of the classical mass action law, inertial effects also play a role in chemical kinetics. Therefore, the kinetics is extended to an enlarged state space with reaction rates as new state variables and bringing inertial effects. The dynamics is then lifted to the Liouville description within kinetic theory on the enlarged state space in order to include fluctuations. Subsequently, the kinetic theory is reduced to its first and second moments, leading to a new Grad-like hierarchy in chemical kinetics, expressing the multiscale nature of the chemical kinetic with inertia. Dissipation within the extended state space is proposed and it is shown to lead to the classical mass action law when the moments relax to their respective quasi-equilibria. In particular, we demonstrate the possibility of oscillating homogeneous chemical reactions and how the correlations of fluctuations correspond with the chemical kinetics.