Lattice model of gas condensation within nanopores

Phys Rev E Stat Nonlin Soft Matter Phys. 2002 Jun;65(6 Pt 1):061607. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevE.65.061607. Epub 2002 Jun 24.

Abstract

We explore the thermodynamic behavior of gases adsorbed within a nanopore. The theoretical description employs a simple lattice gas model, with two species of site, expected to describe various regimes of adsorption and condensation behavior. The model includes four hypothetical phases: a cylindrical shell phase (S), in which the sites close to the cylindrical wall are occupied, an axial phase (A), in which sites along the cylinder's axis are occupied, a full phase (F), in which all sites are occupied, and an empty phase (E). We obtain exact results at T=0 for the phase behavior, which is a function of the interactions present in any specific problem. We obtain the corresponding results at finite T from mean field theory. Finally, we examine the model's predicted phase behavior of some real gases adsorbed in nanopores.