Prediction of the viscosity of natural gas at high temperature and high pressure using free-volume theory and entropy scaling

Eighteen models based on two equations of state(EoS),three viscosity models,and four mixing rules were constructed to predict the viscosities of natural gases at high temperature and high pressure(HTHP)conditions.For pure substances,the parameters of free volume(FV)and entropy scaling(ES)models were found to scale with molecular weight,which indicates that the ordered behavior of parameters of Peng-Robinson(PR)and Perturbed-Chain Statistical Associating Fluid Theory(PC-SAFT)propagates to the behavior of parameters of viscosity model.Predicting the viscosities of natural gases showed that the FV and ES models respectively combined with MIX4 and MIX2 mixing rules produced the best accuracy.Moreover,the FV models were more accurate for predicting the viscosities of natural gases than ES models at HTHP conditions,while the ES models were superior to PRFT models.The average absolute relative deviations of the best accurate three models,i.e.,PC-SAFT-FV-MIX4,tPR-FVMIX4,and PC-SAFT-ES-MIX2,were 5.66%,6.27%,and 6.50%,respectively,which was available for industrial production.Compared with the existing industrial models(corresponding states theory and LBC),the proposed three models were more accurate for modeling the viscosity of natural gas,including gas condensate.

Integration of molecular dynamic simulation and free volume theory for modeling membrane VOC/gas separation

Gas membrane separation process is highly unpredictable due to interacting non-ideal factors, such as composition/pressure-dependent permeabilities and real gas behavior. Although molecular dynamic （MD） simulation can mimic those complex effects, it cannot precisely predict bulk properties due to scale limitations of calculation algorithm. This work proposes a method for modeling a membrane separation process for volatile organic compounds by combining the MD simulation with the free volume theory. This method can avoid the scale-up problems of the MD method and accurately simulate the performance of membranes. Small scale MD simulation and pure gas permeation data are employed to correlate pressure-irrelevant parameters for the free volume theory; by this approach, the microscopic effects can be directly linked to bulk properties （non-ideal permeability）, instead of being fitted by a statistical approach. A lab-scale hollow fiber membrane module was prepared for the model validation and evaluation. The comparison of model predictions with experimental results shows that the deviations of product purity are reduced from 10% to less than 1%, and the deviations of the permeate and residue flow rates are significantly reduced from 40% to 4%, indicating the reliability of the model. The proposed method provides an efficient tool for process engineering to simulate the membrane recovery process.

Model Calculation of ln γ_i^0 for Solute Elements in Copper-base Alloy Systems

A calculation formula of ln γ i 0 for solute element i in liquid alloys was derived by use of free volume theory and Miedema formation enthalpy model. The values of ln γ i 0 of solute elements in liquid copper at 1273 K were obtained. The results obtained show that the coincidence rate of sign (positive or negative) was 90% for the calculated and experimental values, which were basically in the same magnitude.

Comparison of Some Methods on Prediction of Activity Interaction Coefficient

Based on Miedema's semiempirical formation enthalpy model for binary alloys, free volume theory and ageneral solution model, a new model for prediction of activity interaction coefficient ε is proposed. The calculatedresults are better in agreement with the experimental values than the two previous models. The related theories andmodels are discussed according to the degree of agreement with experimental values.