Formula Used:
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Definition: The activity coefficient is a factor used in thermodynamics to account for deviations from ideal behavior in a mixture of chemical substances.
Purpose: It helps chemical engineers and researchers accurately predict vapor-liquid equilibrium in non-ideal systems.
The calculator uses the formula:
Where:
Explanation: The K-value is multiplied by total pressure and divided by the component's saturation pressure to determine its activity coefficient.
Details: Accurate activity coefficients are crucial for designing distillation columns, predicting phase behavior, and modeling chemical processes.
Tips: Enter the K-value (typically between 0 and 1), total system pressure in Pascals, and component saturation pressure in Pascals. All values must be > 0.
Q1: What does the activity coefficient tell us?
A: It indicates how much a component deviates from ideal behavior in a mixture (γ=1 for ideal, γ>1 for positive deviation, γ<1 for negative deviation).
Q2: How is K-value determined?
A: K-value is typically measured experimentally or calculated from vapor-liquid equilibrium data.
Q3: What's a typical range for activity coefficients?
A: While theoretically unlimited, most practical systems have γ between 0.1 and 10.
Q4: When would I need this calculation?
A: When working with non-ideal mixtures in distillation, absorption, or other separation processes.
Q5: How does temperature affect the result?
A: Temperature primarily affects the saturation pressure value in the denominator of the equation.