The Solubility and Heat of Methane in Hydrocarbon Oils

Abstract

To design a methane gas absorber in_which hydrocarbon oils are employed, the relation between the fugacity of methane solution and the amount of methane dissolvedin kerosene and urea-adduct-refined kerosene was studied, at various pressures (1-50atm.) and temperatures (0-30°C).
1) In pressure changes, Henry's law was confirmed to hold, that is, the mol-fraction of dissolved methane was found to be proportional to the fugacity of methane.
2) With temperature changes, it was found that the logarithms of Henry's constant (lnh) changed linearly to the reciprocals of temperature (1/T).
3) From these relations were obtained experimental equations formethane, dissolved in each solvent.
4) The straight lines of ln h-1/T were investigated thermodynamically, and the heat of methane solution in each solvent was obtained from these slopes.
5) From McDaniel's experimental values for the solubility of methane in n-hexane and n-heptane, similar straight lines were derived and the heat of respective solutions was calculated. These heat data of solutions served to prove that the increase of the carbon number in hydrocarbon solvents lowered the heat of solution.