Thermodynamic analysis of effluent tailing observed during dissolution of binary oil mixtures

Tailing phenomena observed during the dissolution of binary oil mixtures are manifestations of non-equilibrium effects and are not induced by non-ideal partitioning. This conclusion follows a thermodynamically-based analysis of the dissolution process in a chromatographic framework. A criterion, both components of binary oil mixtures having enhanced or unaffected solubilities relative to Raoultʹs law, serves as an indicator for systems in which non-linear-partitioning induced tailing is precluded; tailing must be the result of non-equilibrium processes. This condition is the rule, since chemical dissimilarities tend to increase activity coefficients in mixtures.