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Condensation

المؤلف:  Peter Atkins، Julio de Paula

المصدر:  ATKINS PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY

الجزء والصفحة:  17

2025-10-30

411

Condensation

Now consider what happens when we compress a sample of gas initially in the state marked A in Fig. 1.15 at constant temperature (by pushing in a piston). Near A, the pressure of the gas rises in approximate agreement with Boyle’s law. Serious deviations from that law begin to appear when the volume has been reduced to B. At C (which corresponds to about 60 atm for carbon dioxide), all similarity to perfect behaviour is lost, for suddenly the piston slides in without any further rise in pressure: this stage is represented by the horizontal line CDE. Examination of the contents of the vessel shows that just to the left of C a liquid appears, and there are two phases separated by a sharply defined surface. As the volume is decreased from C through D to E, the amount of liquid increases. There is no additional resistance to the piston because the gas can respond by condensing. The pressure corresponding to the line CDE, when both liquid and vapour are present in equilibrium, is called the vapour pressure of the liquid at the temperature of the experiment. At E, the sample is entirely liquid and the piston rests on its surface. Any further reduction of volume requires the exertion of considerable pressure, as is indicated by the sharply rising line to the left of E. Even a small reduction of volume from E to F requires a great increase in pressure.

Fig. 1.15 Experimental isotherms of carbon dioxide at several temperatures. The ‘critical isotherm’, the isotherm at the critical temperature, is at 31.04°C. The critical point is marked with a star.