Water vapor effect on the physico-geometrical reaction pathway and kinetics of the multistep thermal dehydration of calcium chloride dihydrate

This study investigated how water vapor influences the reaction pathway and kinetics of the multistep thermal dehydration of inorganic hydrates, focusing on CaCl2·2H2O (CC-DH) transforming into its anhydride (CC-AH) via an intermediate of its monohydrate (CC-MH). In the presence of atmospheric water vapor, the thermal dehydration of CC-DH stoichiometrically proceeded through two distinct steps, resulting in the formation of CC-AH via CC-MH under isothermal conditions and linear nonisothermal conditions at a lower heating rate (β). Irrespective of atmospheric water vapor pressure (p(H2O)), these reaction steps were kinetically characterized by a physico-geometrical consecutive process involving the surface reaction and phase boundary-controlled reaction, which was accompanied by three-dimensional shrinkage of the reaction interface. In addition, a significant induction period was observed for the second reaction step, that is, the thermal dehydration of CC-MH intermediate to form CC-AH. With increasing p(H2O), a systematic increase in the apparent Arrhenius parameters was observed for the first reaction step, that is, the thermal dehydration of CC-DH to form CC-MH, whereas the second reaction step exhibited unsystematic variations of the Arrhenius parameters. At a larger β in the presence of atmospheric water vapor, the first and second reaction steps partially overlapped; moreover, an alternative reaction step of the thermal dehydration of CC-MH to form CaCl2·0.3H2O was observed between these reaction steps. The physico-geometrical phenomena influencing the reaction pathway and kinetics of the multistep thermal dehydration were elucidated by considering the effects of atmospheric and self-generated water vapor in a geometrically constrained reaction scheme.

The physico-geometrical reaction pathway and kinetics of multistep thermal dehydration of calcium chloride dihydrate in a dry nitrogen stream

Several inorganic hydrates exhibit reversible reactions of thermal dehydration and rehydration, which is potentially applicable to thermochemical energy storage. Detailed kinetic information on both forward and reverse reactions is essential for refining energy storage systems. In this study, factors determining the reaction pathway and kinetics of the multistep thermal dehydration of inorganic hydrates to form anhydride via intermediate hydrates were investigated as exemplified by the thermal dehydration of CaCl2·2H2O (CC-DH) in a stream of dry N2. The formation of CaCl2·H2O (CC-MH) as the intermediate hydrate is known during the thermal dehydration of CC-DH to form its anhydride (CC-AH). However, the two-step kinetic modeling based on the chemical reaction pathway considering the formation of the CC-MH intermediate failed in terms of the reaction stoichiometry and kinetic behavior of the component reaction steps. The kinetic modeling was refined by considering the physico-geometrical reaction mechanism and the self-generated reaction conditions to be a three-step reaction. The multistep reaction was explained as comprising the surface reaction of the thermal dehydration of CC-DH to CC-AH and subsequent contracting geometry-type reactions from CC-DH to CC-MH and from CC-MH to CC-AH occurring consecutively in the core of the reacting particles surrounded by the surface product layer of CC-AH. The acceleration of the linear advancement rate of the reaction interface during both contracting geometry-type reactions was revealed through multistep kinetic analysis and was described by a decrease in the water vapor pressure at the reaction interface as the previous reaction step proceeded and terminated.

Efflorescence kinetics of sodium carbonate decahydrate: a universal description as a function of temperature, degree of reaction, and water vapor pressure

The efflorescence of sodium carbonate decahydrate (SC-DH) required to form its monohydrate (SC-MH) was systematically studied under isothermal and linear nonisothermal conditions at different atmospheric water vapor pressures (p(H2O)) using a humidity-controlled thermogravimetry instrument equipped with a cooling circulator. The universal kinetic description at various temperatures (T) and p(H2O) values was evaluated using the extended kinetic equation with an accommodation function (AF) comprising p(H2O) and the equilibrium pressure of the reaction (Peq(T)). By optimizing two exponents in the AF, all kinetic data were universally described in terms of the isoconversional kinetic relationship examined at individual degrees of reaction (α). This enabled the examination of the isothermal kinetic relationship and the parameterization of the contribution of the self-generated water vapor, allowing the incorporation of kinetic data recorded in a stream of dry N2 into the universal kinetic description as a function of T, α, and p(H2O). The results indicated that the reaction is physico-geometrically controlled by the surface reaction at the hemispherical top surface of SC-DH particles and subsequent advancement of the reaction interface toward the center and bottom of these particles, where the interfacial process is regulated by an elementary step of the consumption of H2O vacancies to form the SC-MH building unit. The apparent activation energy (Ea) of ∼178 kJ mol-1 was determined using the extended kinetic approach considering the effect of p(H2O) correlated with the intrinsic Ea of the Arrhenius-type temperature dependence (∼63 kJ mol-1) by subtracting the contribution of the temperature dependence of Peq(T) in the AF.

Flexible Kinetic Model Determination of Reactions in Materials under Isothermal Conditions

Kinetic analysis remains a powerful tool for studying a large variety of reactions, which lies at the core of material science and industry. It aims at obtaining the kinetic parameters and model that best describe a given process and using that information to make reliable predictions in a wide range of conditions. Nonetheless, kinetic analysis often relies on mathematical models derived assuming ideal conditions that are not necessarily met in real processes. The existence of nonideal conditions causes large modifications to the functional form of kinetic models. Therefore, in many cases, experimental data hardly obey any of these ideal models. In this work, we present a novel method for the analysis of integral data obtained under isothermal conditions without any type of assumption about the kinetic model. The method is valid both for processes that follow and for those that do not follow ideal kinetic models. It consists of using a general kinetic equation to find the functional form of the kinetic model via numerical integration and optimization. The procedure has been tested both with simulated data affected by nonuniform particle size and experimental data corresponding to the pyrolysis of ethylene-propylene-diene.

Effect of atmospheric water vapor on independent-parallel thermal dehydration of a compacted composite of an inorganic hydrate: sodium carbonate monohydrate grains comprising crystalline particles and a matrix

The effect of atmospheric water vapor on the thermal dehydration of sodium carbonate monohydrate (SC-MH), which was characterized as cubic grains of a compacted composite comprising columnar SC-MH crystals and a matrix, was systematically assessed using a humidity-controlled thermogravimetry system at various atmospheric water vapor pressures (p(H₂O)). The thermal dehydration of the SC-MH compacted composite occurred via an induction period (IP) and partially overlapping two-step mass loss steps due to the thermal dehydration of the SC-MH matrix and columnar crystals. All component reaction steps were retarded with an increase in the p(H₂O) value. The kinetics of individual reaction steps were universally described over different temperatures and p(H₂O) values based on a kinetic equation that considered p(H₂O) and the equilibrium pressure of the thermal dehydration. Additionally, the physico-geometrical consecutive surface reaction (SR) and subsequent phase boundary-controlled reaction (PBR) model was employed to describe the first mass loss step. The difference between the effects of atmospheric p(H₂O) on SR and PBR processes was parameterized via an advanced kinetic analysis. The kinetic behavior of the second mass loss step was discussed based on a three-dimensional contracting geometry model with accelerating reaction interface advancement, where the changes in the rate behavior with atmospheric p(H₂O) were explained by the total effect of atmospheric and self-generated p(H₂O) on the kinetics. The present results provide additional insights into the independent-parallel thermal decomposition kinetics of composite materials by considering the effects of atmospheric and self-generated gases.

Experimental and Numerical Investigation of the Dehydration of Ca(OH)2 at Low Steam Pressures

The CaO/Ca(OH)2 system can be the basis for cost-efficient long-term energy storage, as the chemically stored energy is not affected by heat losses, and the raw material is cheap and abundantly available. While the hydration (thermal discharge) has already been addressed by several studies, for the dehydration (thermal charge) at low partial steam pressures, there is a lack of numerical studies validated at different conditions and operation modes. However, the operation at low steam pressures is important, as it decreases the dehydration temperature, which can enable the use of waste heat. Even if higher charging temperatures are available, for example by incorporating electrical energy, the reaction rate can be increased by lowering the steam pressure. At low pressures and temperatures, the limiting steps in a reactor might change compared to previous studies. In particular, the reaction kinetics might become limiting due to a decreased reaction rate at lower temperatures, or the reduced steam density at low pressures could result in high velocities, causing a gas transport limitation. Therefore, we conducted new measurements with a thermogravimetric analyzer only for the specific steam partial pressure range between 0.8 and 5.5 kPa. Based on these measurements, we derived a new mathematical fit for the reaction rate for the temperature range between 375 and 440 °C. Additionally, we performed experiments in an indirectly heated fixed bed reactor with two different operation modes in a pressure range between 2.8 and 4.8 kPa and set up a numerical model. The numerical results show that the model appropriately describes the reactor behavior and is validated within the measurement uncertainty. Moreover, our study revealed an important impact of the operation condition itself: the permeability of the reactive bulk is significantly increased if the dehydration is initiated by a rapid pressure reduction compared to an isobaric dehydration by a temperature increase. We conclude that the pressure reduction leads to structural changes in the bulk, such as channeling, which enhances the gas transport. This finding could reduce the complexity of future reactor designs. Finally, the presented model can assist the design of thermochemical reactors in the validated pressure and temperature range.

Individual effects of atmospheric water vapor and carbon dioxide on the kinetics of the thermal decomposition of granular malachite

This study examined the effects of atmospheric water vapor and CO2 on the thermal decomposition of granular malachite as a model process for the thermal decomposition of large and compact...

Advanced kinetic approach to the multistep thermal dehydration of calcium sulfate dihydrate under different heating and water vapor conditions: kinetic deconvolution and universal isoconversional analyses

This study aims to identify the kinetic features of individual reaction steps of the multistep thermal dehydration of calcium sulfate dihydrate (CS-DH) to anhydride via hemihydrate (CS-HH) intermediate by achieving...

Thermal dehydration of calcium sulfate dihydrate: physico-geometrical kinetic modeling and the influence of self-generated water vapor

Complex kinetic behaviors in the thermal dehydration of CaSO4·2H2O under varying water vapor pressure (p(H2O)) conditions impel researchers in the field of solid-state kinetics to gain a more comprehensive understanding. Both self-generated and atmospheric p(H2O) are responsible for determining the reaction pathways and the overall kinetic behaviors. This study focuses on the influence of the self-generated water vapor to obtain further insights into the complexity of the kinetic behaviors. The single-step mass-loss process under conditions generating a low p(H2O) was characterized kinetically by a physico-geometrical consecutive induction period, surface reaction, and phase boundary-controlled reaction, along with the evaluation of the kinetic parameters for the individual physico-geometrical reaction steps. Under the conditions in which more p(H2O) was generated, the overall reaction to form the anhydride was interpreted as a three-step process, comprising the initial reaction (direct dehydration to the anhydride) and a subsequent two-step reaction via the intermediate hemihydrate, which was caused by the variations in the self-generated p(H2O) conditions as the reaction advanced. The variations in the reaction pathways and kinetics behaviors under the self-generated p(H2O) conditions are discussed through a systematic kinetic analysis conducted using advanced kinetic approaches for the multistep process.

Kinetics of contracting geometry-type reactions in the solid state: implications from the thermally induced transformation processes of α-oxalic acid dihydrate

This study focuses on the physico-geometrical constraints of the kinetics of the thermal decomposition of solids as exemplified by the thermal dehydration of α-oxalic acid dihydrate and the subsequent thermally induced sublimation/decomposition of the as-produced anhydride using the samples of crystalline particles (CPs) and a single crystal (SC) form. The CP and SC samples possess approximately similar geometrical figures with different sizes. The shapes of the original dihydrate and the as-produced anhydride from thermal dehydration are practically congruent. Therefore, proper evaluations of the current kinetic understanding of contracting geometry-type reactions were expected by the comparisons of the kinetic behaviors among different sample forms and thermally induced processes. The kinetic analysis of the thermal dehydration process revealed that the consecutive physico-geometrical processes comprised of an induction period, a surface reaction, and a phase boundary-controlled reaction, where distinguishable differences in the rate behavior were observed between the CP and SC samples for the surface reaction. On the other hand, the thermally induced sublimation/decomposition of the anhydride was described as an ideal single-step geometry contraction process, for which the CP and SC samples exhibited the same rate variation behavior under isothermal conditions. However, the sublimation/decomposition processes of the CP and SC samples were characterized by the different Arrhenius parameters, in which the compensative changes in the apparent activation energy and preexponential factor were apparent. Implications for the kinetic modeling of the solid-state reactions and the interpretation of kinetic results were obtained from the results of the comparative kinetic study for different sample forms and thermally induced processes.

Revealing the effect of water vapor pressure on the kinetics of thermal decomposition of magnesium hydroxide

This study aims to establish an advanced kinetic theory for reactions in solid state and solid-gas systems, achieving a universal kinetic description over a range of temperature and partial pressure of reactant or product gases. The thermal decomposition of Mg(OH)2 to MgO was selected as a model reaction system, and the effect of water vapor pressure p(H2O) on the kinetics was investigated via humidity controlled thermogravimetry. The reaction rate of the thermal decomposition process at a constant temperature was systematically decreased by increasing the p(H2O) value, accompanied by an increase in the sigmoidal feature of mass-loss curves. Under nonisothermal conditions at a given heating rate, mass-loss curves shifted systematically to higher temperatures depending on the p(H2O) value. The kinetic behavior under different temperature and p(H2O) conditions was universally analyzed by introducing an accommodation function (AF) of the form (P°/p(H2O))a[1 - (p(H2O)/Peq(T))b], where P° and Peq(T) are the standard and equilibrium pressures, respectively, into the fundamental kinetic equation. Two kinetic approaches were examined based on the isoconversional kinetic relationship and a physico-geometrical consecutive reaction model. In both the kinetic approaches, universal kinetic descriptions are achieved using the modified kinetic equation with the AF. The kinetic features of thermal decomposition are revealed by correlating the results from the two universal kinetic approaches. Furthermore, advanced features for the kinetic understanding of thermal decomposition of solids revealed by the universal kinetic descriptions are discussed by comparing the present kinetic results with those reported previously for the thermal decomposition of Ca(OH)2 and Cu(OH)2.

Kinetics of Solid-Gas Reactions and Their Application to Carbonate Looping Systems

Reaction kinetics is an important field of study in chemical engineering to translate laboratory-scale studies to large-scale reactor conditions. The procedures used to determine kinetic parameters (activation energy, pre-exponential factor and the reaction model) include model-fitting, model-free and generalized methods, which have been extensively used in published literature to model solid-gas reactions. A comprehensive review of kinetic analysis methods will be presented using the example of carbonate looping, an important process applied to thermochemical energy storage and carbon capture technologies. The kinetic parameters obtained by different methods for both the calcination and carbonation reactions are compared. The experimental conditions, material properties and the kinetic method are found to strongly influence the kinetic parameters and recommendations are provided for the analysis of both reactions. Of the methods, isoconversional techniques are encouraged to arrive at non-mechanistic parameters for calcination, while for carbonation, material characterization is recommended before choosing a specific kinetic analysis method.