The pioneer work devoted to evaluating finite time limitations for heat engines was published by I. Novikov in 1957, and independently by F.L. Curzon and B. Ahlborn in 1975: the efficiency at maximum power per cycle of a heat engine coupled to its surroundings through a constant heat conductor is η η N C A = 1 − − T c o l d T h o t (the Novikov-Curzon-Ahlborn formula). The Novikov-Curzon-Ahlborn process is also optimal in the sense of minimal dissipation. Otherwise, if the dissipation degree is given, the process corresponds to the maximum entropy principle. Later, the results were extended and generalized for other criteria and for more complex situations based on modern optimal control theory. As a result, a new direction in thermodynamics arose known under the names "optimization thermodynamics", "finite-time thermodynamics", Endoreversible thermodynamics or "control thermodynamics", see.