Thermodynamic equilibrium of adsorbed phases

The types of phase equilibrium behavior for adsorbed binary mixtures that can be predicted by an equation of state (EOS) based on the lattice gas theory are investigated. The equilibrium conditions were obtained by solving the isofugacity equations between adsorbed phases. It is observed that the investigated EOS can predict complex behavior for adsorbed phases such as the existence of azeotropes, and retrograde and double retrograde phase transition phenomena, that are analogous to those found in bulk phase equilibrium. Furthermore, it was possible to find systems that presented phase equilibrium between two dense adsorbed phases, analogously to liquid–liquid equilibrium for bulk phases. Experimental data would be necessary to confirm the types of adsorbed phase behavior predicted by the calculations presented.