Multilayer adsorption on fractal surfaces

Powder activated coke prepared from coal fast pyrolysis: fractal characteristics and SO2 adsorption

The rapid and low-cost preparation of powder activated coke (PAC) is very important for the promotion of fluidized dry desulfurization technology of activated coke. In order to explore the effect of rapid pyrolysis process on SO₂ adsorption capacity of PAC, the fractal analysis of PAC prepared under different atmospheres was carried out. The Frenkel-Halsey-Hill (FHH) method was used to determine two fractal dimensions D₁ and D₂, under relative pressures of 0-0.5 and 0.5-1, respectively. The results indicate that the fractal dimensions were influenced by the concentrations of activation agents with D₁ ranging from 2.1838 to 2.8643 and D₂ ranging from 2.7485 to 2.9257. The effect of steam on the fractal dimension of PAC sample is small, but oxygen has a great promotion effect on the fractal dimension. An n-shaped curve-based relationship between fractal dimensions and coke yields is observed with a peak values of fractal dimensions appearing around 64% yield. The SO₂ adsorption capacity shows a consecutively positive linear correlation with D₂, while it illustrates distinctly different linear rates with D₁ in intervals of 2-2.6 and 2.6-3, respectively. Taking advantage of fractal analysis as research method, this paper clarified the influence of activation atmosphere and ablative degree on the SO₂ adsorption capacity of PAC, and the research conclusion provided a basis for the PAC preparation with high SO₂ capacity.

Review about the Application of Fractal Theory in the Research of Packaging Materials

The work is intended to summarize the recent progress in the work of fractal theory in packaging material to provide important insights into applied research on fractal in packaging materials. The fractal analysis methods employed for inorganic materials such as metal alloys and ceramics, polymers, and their composites are reviewed from the aspects of fractal feature extraction and fractal dimension calculation methods. Through the fractal dimension of packaging materials and the fractal in their preparation process, the relationship between the fractal characteristic parameters and the properties of packaging materials is discussed. The fractal analysis method can qualitatively and quantitatively characterize the fractal characteristics, microstructure, and properties of a large number of various types of packaging materials. The method of using fractal theory to probe the preparation and properties of packaging materials is universal; the relationship between the properties of packaging materials and fractal dimension will be a critical trend of fractal theory in the research on properties of packaging materials.

Multilayer adsorption in liquid chromatography - The surface heterogeneity below an adsorbed multilayer

A numerical method was introduced for the estimation of the surface heterogeneity below an adsorbed multilayer of the analyte. The calculation procedure is based on the raw adsorption isotherm data points obtained by frontal analysis experiments. To permit the mapping of the nature of the analyte-surface interaction, a numerical procedure was used to pre-estimate the adsorbate-adsorbate interactions occurring during the adsorption process. The surface heterogeneity estimation was carried out using the affinity-energy distribution calculations with assuming local BET isotherm. In the local BET isotherm the pre-estimated adsorbate-adsorbate interaction constant was used, and the surface heterogeneity was described. After the test of the numerical method with benchmark isotherms, the algorithm was tested on several experimental isotherms. The isotherms were measured using phenol as test molecule on reversed phase adsorbents, with different surface coverage of the octadecyl ligands. The surface of the non-end-capped stationary phases showed detectable heterogeneity, while the surface end-capped phases were found to be homogeneous.

Evaluation of the phase ratio for three C18 high performance liquid chromatographic columns

For a chromatographic column, phase ratio Φ is defined as the ratio between the volume of the stationary phase Vst and the void volume of the column V0, and it is an important parameter characterizing the HPLC process. Although apparently simple, the evaluation of Φ presents difficulties because there is no sharp boundary between the mobile phase and the stationary phase. In addition, the boundary depends not only on the nature of the stationary phase, but also on the composition of the mobile phase. In spite of its importance, phase ratio is seldom reported for commercially available HPLC columns and the data typically provided by the vendors about the columns do not provide key information that would allow the calculation of Φ based on Vst and V0 values. A different procedure for the evaluation of Φ is based on the following formula: log k'j=a log Kow,j+log Φ, where k'j is the retention factor for a compound j that must be a hydrocarbon, Kow,j is the octanol/water partition coefficient, and a is a proportionality constant. Present study describes the experimental evaluation of Φ based on the measurement of k'j for the compounds in the homologous series between benzene and butylbenzene for three C18 columns: Gemini C18, Luna C18 both with 5 μm particles, and a Chromolith Performance RP-18. The evaluation was performed for two mobile phase systems at different proportions of methanol/water and acetonitrile/water. The octanol/water partition coefficients were obtained from the literature. The results obtained in the study provide further support for the new procedure for the evaluation of phase ratio.