A Case Study of Non-Fourier Heat Conduction Using Internal Variables and GENERIC

Applying simultaneously the methodology of non-equilibrium thermodynamics with internal variables (NET-IV) and the framework of General Equation for the Non-Equilibrium Reversible–Irreversible Coupling (GENERIC), we demonstrate that, in heat conduction theories, entropy current multipliers can be interpreted as relaxed state variables. Fourier’s law and its various extensions—the Maxwell–Cattaneo–Vernotte, Guyer–Krumhansl, Jeffreys type, Ginzburg–Landau (Allen–Cahn) type and ballistic–diffusive heat conduction equations—are derived in both formulations. Along these lines, a comparison of NET-IV and GENERIC is also performed. Our results may pave the way for microscopic/multiscale understanding of beyond-Fourier heat conduction and open new ways for numerical simulations of heat conduction problems.