  A manifestly covariant, coordinate independent reformulation of the
Thermodynamic Field Theory (TFT) is presented. The TFT is a covariant field
theory that describes the evolution of a thermodynamic system, extending the
near-equilibrium theory established by Prigogine in 1954. We introduce the {\it
Minimum Dissipation Principle}, which is conjectured to apply to any system
relaxing towards a steady-state. We also derive the thermodynamic field
equations, which in the case of alpha-alpha and beta-beta processes have
already appeared in the literature. In more general cases the equations are
notably simpler than those previously encountered and they are conjectured to
hold beyond the weak-field regime. Finally we derive the equations that
determine the steady-states as well as the critical values of the control
parameters beyond which a steady-state becomes unstable.
