A Thermodynamic Model for Square-well Chain Fluid: Theory and Monte Carlo Simulation

A thermodynamic model for the freely jointed square-well chain fluids was developed based on the thermodynamic perturbation theory of Barker-Henderson, Zhang and Wertheim. In this derivation Zhang's expressions for square-well monomers improved from Barker-Henderson compressibility approximation were adopted as the reference fluid, and Wertheim's polymerization method was used to obtain the free energy term due to the bond connectivity. An analytic expression for the Helmholtz free energy of the square-well chain fluids was obtained. The expression without adjustable parameters leads to the thermodynamic consistent predictions of the compressibility factors, residual internal energy and constant-volume heat capacity for dimer, 4-mer, 8-mer and 16-mer square-well fluids. The results are in good agreement with the Monte Carlo simulation. To obtain the MC data of residual internal energy and the constant-volume heat capacity needed, NVT MC simulations were performed for these square-well chain fluids.     

Calculating thermodynamic properties from perturbation theory: Part III. The mixtures of square-well chain fluid

A completely analytic perturbation theory has been developed to calculate the Helmholtz energy, compressibility factor, internal energy and constant-volume heat capacity for square-well chain fluid mixtures. This theory is based on the improved Barker–Henderson macroscopic compressibility (mc) approximation proposed by Zhang, the first-order perturbation theory of Wertheim in which Zhang’s analytic monomer radial distribution function as the function of temperature and monomer density is used, and a simple mixing rule similar to that of Hino–Prausnitz. The validity of the perturbation theory is evaluated by comparing the calculated compressibility factor, internal energy and constant-volume heat capacity for the freely jointed square-well chain mixtures from the theory to MC simulation data. The results show that the theory predicts results in good agreement with simulation results.     

链状分子状态方程的推导及热容的推算

在Barker Henderson, Zhang以及Wertheim 等微扰理论的基础上,以方阱势硬球流体为参考体系,将Zhang的解析表达方法与Wertheim 的链成键自由能的处理方法结合起来,推导出自由链接的链状分子流体的Helmholtz自由能的解析表达式,并得到了压缩因子、内能、恒容热容等热力学性质的计算式.计算结果与MC(Monte Carlo)模拟结果吻合良好.对Zhang的解析表达式与“TPT D”(二阶Wertheim微扰理论)的结合也作了推导和计算.     

A completely analytic equation of state for the square-well chain fluid of variable well width

A completely analytic perturbation theory equation of state for the freely-jointed square-well chain fluid of variable well width (1 ≤ λ ≤ 2) is developed and tested against Monte Carlo simulation data. The equation of state is based on second-order Barker and Henderson perturbation theory to calculate the thermodynamic properties of the reference monomer fluid, and on first-order Wertheim thermodynamic perturbation theory to account for the connectivity of monomers to form chains. By using a recently developed real function expression for the radial distribution function of hard spheres in perturbation theory, we obtain analytic, closed form expressions for the Helmholtz free energy and the radial distribution function of square-well monomers of any well width. This information is used as the reference fluid in the perturbation theory of Wertheim to obtain an analytic equation of state, without adjustable parameters, that leads to good predictions of the compressibility factors and residual internal energies for 4-mer, 8-mer and 16-mer square-well fluids when compared with the simulation results. Further, very good results are obtained when this equation of state with temperature-independent parameters is used to correlate the vapor pressures and critical points of the linear alkanes from methane to n-decane.     

Application of a renormalization-group treatment to the statistical associating fluid theory for potentials of variable range (SAFT-VR)

An accurate prediction of phase behavior at conditions far and close to criticality cannot be accomplished by mean-field based theories that do not incorporate long-range density fluctuations. A treatment based on renormalization-group (RG) theory as developed by White and co-workers has proven to be very successful in improving the predictions of the critical region with different equations of state. The basis of the method is an iterative procedure to account for contributions to the free energy of density fluctuations of increasing wavelengths. The RG method has been combined with a number of versions of the statistical associating fluid theory (SAFT), by implementing White's earliest ideas with the improvements of Prausnitz and co-workers. Typically, this treatment involves two adjustable parameters: a cutoff wavelength L for density fluctuations and an average gradient of the wavelet function Φ. In this work, the SAFT-VR (variable range) equation of state is extended with a similar crossover treatment which, however, follows closely the most recent improvements introduced by White. The interpretation of White's latter developments allows us to establish a straightforward method which enables Φ to be evaluated; only the cutoff wavelength L then needs to be adjusted. The approach used here begins with an initial free energy incorporating only contributions from short-wavelength fluctuations, which are treated locally. The contribution from long-wavelength fluctuations is incorporated through an iterative procedure based on attractive interactions which incorporate the structure of the fluid following the ideas of perturbation theories and using a mapping that allows integration of the radial distribution function. Good agreement close and far from the critical region is obtained using a unique fitted parameter L that can be easily related to the range of the potential. In this way the thermodynamic properties of a square-well (SW) fluid are given by the same number of independent intermolecular model parameters as in the classical equation. Far from the critical region the approach provides the correct limiting behavior reducing to the classical equation (SAFT-VR). In the critical region the β critical exponent is calculated and is found to take values close to the universal value. In SAFT-VR the free energy of an associating chain fluid is obtained following the thermodynamic perturbation theory of Wertheim from the knowledge of the free energy and radial distribution function of a reference monomer fluid. By determining L for SW fluids of varying well width a unique equation of state is obtained for chain and associating systems without further adjustment of critical parameters. We use computer simulation data of the phase behavior of chain and associating SW fluids to test the accuracy of the new equation.     

A simple methodology for analyzing association effects on response functions via Monte Carlo simulations

A simple methodology was developed to analyze association effects on the thermodynamic response functions for a pure self-associated fluid via Monte Carlo simulations. The procedure essentially involves expressing the residual energy and volume of the fluid in terms of these properties for two hypothetical fluids consisting of monomers and associated molecules, respectively. This allows the thermodynamic response functions to be expressed in a perturbative form as a combination of the values for the property in the monomeric fluid and the contribution of association (the perturbative term). The proposed methodology was used to determine both contributions to the isobaric heat capacity and to the temperature and pressure derivatives of the volume for OPLS methanol along the 50 MPa isobar from 220 to 1500 K. Based on the results, both terms exert a substantial influence on the isobaric heat capacity; by contrast, the association term for the volumetric properties is negligible. These results are consistent with those of a previous work involving simulations with the same model under identical thermodynamic conditions but a different approach. They are also compared with others previously reported in context. Moreover, a comprehensive study of the different types of clusters present in the fluid was performed and the results were related to thermodynamic properties. A strong correlation between the heat capacity of the monomeric fluid and this structural analysis was found.     

The effect of density on the properties of short chain fluids

We incorporate density dependence into continuum Born-Green-Yvon (BGY) theory through calculation of the end-to-end intramolecular correlation function. Whereas in previous studies we had only performed this calculation for the case of an isolated (zero-density) square-well chain of m segments (3相似文献   

基于化学缔合统计理论的链状流体状态方程

基于化学缔合统计理论的链状流体状态方程(EOS)能够反映实际分子的形状、链节成链、缔合等具体信息,在实际流体热力学性质计算中有着广泛应用.一般的链状流体EOS仅考虑相邻链节间的相关性,我们则借助统计力学和计算机模拟结果在模型中纳入了相间链节间的相关性,获得的硬球链流体(HSCF)模型能够更好地预测模型流体的压缩因子和第二维里系数.以HSCF为参考,引入方阱色散微扰项获得了实际方阱链流体(SWCF)EOS;结合根据黏滞球模型导得的缔合项,进一步构建了缔合流体EOS.最近,我们根据微扰理论和积分方程方法又开发了一新的变阱宽方阱链流体(SWCF-VR)模型.SWCF和SWCF-VREOSs可很好地用于计算小分子、聚合物、离子液体等纯流体及混合物的相行为、热焓、表面张力、黏度等热力学及传递性质,显示了模型良好的工程应用价值.本文就本课题组多年来在自由空间范畴内基于化学缔合统计理论开发链状流体EOS及其实际应用作系统的总结.     

Two-Gaussian excitations model for the glass transition

We develop a modified "two-state" model with Gaussian widths for the site energies of both ground and excited states, consistent with expectations for a disordered system. The thermodynamic properties of the system are analyzed in configuration space and found to bridge the gap between simple two-state models ("logarithmic" model in configuration space) and the random energy model ("Gaussian" model in configuration space). The Kauzmann singularity given by the random energy model remains for very fragile liquids but is suppressed or eliminated for stronger liquids. The sharp form of constant-volume heat capacity found by recent simulations for binary mixed Lennard-Jones and soft-sphere systems is reproduced by the model, as is the excess entropy and heat capacity of a variety of laboratory systems, strong and fragile. The ideal glass in all cases has a narrow Gaussian, almost invariant among molecular and atomic glassformers, while the excited-state Gaussian depends on the system and its width plays a role in the thermodynamic fragility. The model predicts the possibility of first-order phase transitions for fragile liquids. The analysis of laboratory data for toluene and o-terphenyl indicates that fragile liquids resolve the Kauzmann paradox by a first-order transition from supercooled liquid to ideal-glass state at a temperature between T(g) and Kauzmann temperature extrapolated from experimental data. We stress the importance of the temperature dependence of the energy landscape, predicted by the fluctuation-dissipation theorem, in analyzing the liquid thermodynamics.     

The phase behavior of polyethylene ring chains

The equilibrium properties of an isolated polyethylene ring chain are studied by using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The results of an 80-bond linear chain are also presented, which are in agreement with previous studies of square-well chains and Lennard-Jones (LJ) homopolymers. Mainly, we focus on the collapse of polyethylene ring chains. At high temperatures, a fully oblate structure is observed for the ring chains with different chain lengths. For such an oblate structure, a shape factor of delta(*)=0.25 and a rodlike scaling relation between the radius of gyration and chain lengths could be deduced easily in theory, and the same results are obtained by our MD simulations. Such an oblate structure can be obtained by Monte Carlo simulation only for sufficient stiff ring chains. When the temperature decreases, an internal energy barrier is observed. This induces a strong peak in the heat capacity, denoting a gas-liquid-like transition. This energy barrier comes mainly from the local monomer-monomer interactions, i.e., the bond-stretching, the bond-bending, and the torsion potentials. A low temperature peak is also observed in the same heat capacity curve, representing a liquid-solid-like transition. These numerical simulation results support a two-stage collapse of polyethylene ring chains; however, the nature should be different from the square-well and LJ ring chains.     

Thermodynamic properties in the molecular dynamics ensemble applied to the gaussian core model fluid

The thermodynamic properties of pressure, energy, isothermal pressure coefficient, thermal expansion coefficient, isothermal and adiabatic compressibilities, isobaric and isochoric heat capacities, Joule-Thomson coefficient, and speed of sound are considered in a classical molecular dynamics ensemble. These properties were obtained using the treatment of Lustig [J. Chem. Phys. 100, 3048 (1994)] and Meier and Kabelac [J. Chem. Phys. 124, 064104 (2006)], whereby thermodynamic state variables are expressible in terms of phase-space functions determined directly from molecular dynamics simulations. The complete thermodynamic information about an equilibrium system can be obtained from this general formalism. We apply this method to the gaussian core model fluid because the complex phase behavior of this simple model provides a severe test for this treatment. Waterlike and other anomalies are observed for some of the thermodynamic properties of the gaussian core model fluid.     

Thermodynamic characteristics of gelation for methyl-cellulose hydrogels

Methylcellulose (MC) is a thermo-reversible physical hydrogel. This study investigates the thermodynamic characteristics of gelation mechanism for MC. The relative and absolute specific heat capacity values of the hydrogel system were modeled using an empirical formulation to facilitate calculation of thermodynamic parameters. Experiments verifying the assumptions for the model formulation were conducted and are discussed. Parameters such as enthalpy, entropy, and changes in their magnitude as a function of temperature were calculated and their trends were studied. The implications of these observations on the various stages of the gel formation process and the associated mechanisms are evaluated. The studies revealed that the gelation of MC is a temperature- driven process rather than only driven by the heat input, and it attains a state of equilibrium under isothermal conditions. During gelation, the entropy of the overall (MC+water) system increases due to an increase in the disorderliness of the MC system.     

Toward a statistical mechanical theory for water: analytical theory for a short-ranged reference system

Starting from a realistic Hamiltonian and making use of recent findings that the properties of associating fluids are determined primarily by short-ranged interactions, this methodology has been implemented using statistical mechanical approaches and thermodynamic perturbation theory for the TIP4P model of water. We focus on the short-range reference system for which an analytic expression for the Helmholtz free energy is derived. It is found that the model (reference system) exhibits, in addition to a faithful representation of the structure of water, the same features that are characteristic for real water, namely, (i) the temperature of the density maximum and its pressure dependence, including the inflection point at high pressures and (ii) the temperature minima of the constant pressure heat capacity and the coefficient of isothermal compressibility.     

Theoretical investigation on the structural and thermodynamic properties of FeSe at high pressure and high temperature

A theoretical investigation on structural and thermodynamic properties of 11-type iron-based superconductor FeSe at high pressure and high temperature was performed by employing the first-principles method based on the density functional theory. Some structural parameters of FeSe in both tetragonal and hexagonal phases are reported. According to the fourth-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of states, the transition pressure P(t) of FeSe from the PbO-type phase to the NiAs-type phase was determined. The calculated results are found to be in good agreement with the available experimental data. Based on the quasi-harmonic Debye model, the pressure and temperature dependence of the thermodynamic properties for hexagonal phase FeSe were investigated. Our theoretical calculations suggest that the pressure and temperature have significant effects on the heat capacity, vibrational internal energy, vibrational entropy, vibrational Helmholtz free energy, thermal expansion coefficient and Debye temperature. Even though few theoretical reports on the structural properties of FeSe are found in the current literature, to our knowledge, this is a novel theoretical investigation on the structural and thermodynamic properties of FeSe at high temperature. We hope that the theoretical results reported here can give more insight into the structural and thermodynamic properties of other iron-based superconductors at high temperature.     

Semiclassical approach to model quantum fluids using the statistical associating fluid theory for systems with potentials of variable range

Thermodynamic properties of quantum fluids are described using an extended version of the statistical associating fluid theory for potentials of variable range (SAFT-VR) that takes into account quantum corrections to the Helmholtz free energy A, based on the Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin approximation. We present the theoretical background of this approach (SAFT-VRQ), considering two different cases depending on the continuous or discontinuous nature of the particles pair interaction. For the case of continuous potentials, we demonstrate that the standard Wigner-Kirkwood theory for quantum fluids can be derived from the de Broglie-Bohm formalism for quantum mechanics that can be incorporated within the Barker and Henderson perturbation theory for liquids in a straightforward way. When the particles interact via a discontinuous pair potential, the SAFT-VR method can be combined with the perturbation theory developed by Singh and Sinha [J. Chem. Phys. 67, 3645 (1977); and ibid. 68, 562 (1978)]. We present an analytical expression for the first-order quantum perturbation term for a square-well potential, and the theory is applied to model thermodynamic properties of hydrogen, deuterium, neon, and helium-4. Vapor-liquid equilibrium, liquid and vapor densities, isochoric and isobaric heat capacities, Joule-Thomson coefficients and inversion curves are predicted accurately with respect to experimental data. We find that quantum corrections are important for the global behavior of properties of these fluids and not only for the low-temperature regime. Predictions obtained for hydrogen compare very favorably with respect to cubic equations of state.     

How "sticky" are short-range square-well fluids?

The aim of this work is to investigate to what extent the structural properties of a short-range square-well (SW) fluid of range lambda at a given packing fraction eta and reduced temperature T* = kBT/epsilon can be represented by those of a sticky-hard-sphere (SHS) fluid at the same packing fraction and an effective stickiness parameter tau(T*,lambda). Such an equivalence cannot hold for the radial distribution function g(r) since this function has a delta singularity at contact (r = sigma) in the SHS case, while it has a jump discontinuity at r = lambda sigma in the SW case. Therefore, the equivalence is explored with the cavity function y(r), i.e., we assume that [formula: see text]. Optimization of the agreement between y(SW) and y(SHS) to first order in density suggests the choice tau(T*,lambda) = [12(e(1/T* - 1)(lambda - 1)](-1). We have performed Monte Carlo (MC) simulations of the SW fluid for lambda = 1.05, 1.02, and 1.01 at several densities and temperatures T* such that tau(T*,lambda) = 0.13, 0.2, and 0.5. The resulting cavity functions have been compared with MC data of SHS fluids obtained by Miller and Frenkel[J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 16, S4901 (2004)]. Although, at given values of eta and tau, some local discrepancies between y(SW) and y(SHS) exist (especially for lambda = 1.05), the SW data converge smoothly toward the SHS values as lambda-1 decreases. In fact, precursors of the singularities of y(SHS) at certain distances due to geometrical arrangements are clearly observed in y(SW). The approximate mapping y(SW)-->y(SHS) is exploited to estimate the internal energy and structure factor of the SW fluid from those of the SHS fluid. Taking for y(SHS) the solution of the Percus-Yevick equation as well as the rational-function approximation, the radial distribution function g(r) of the SW fluid is theoretically estimated and a good agreement with our MC simulations is found. Finally, a similar study is carried out for short-range SW fluid mixtures.     

Transport coefficients of square-well fluids

We analyze the analytical form of the velocity time correlation function of a hard sphere system obtained by employing generalized Langevin equation for a square-well fluid. The self-diffusion coefficient and shear viscosity have been calculated using this analytical form of velocity tcf for a square-well fluid. The addition of an attractive square-well potential in place of hard sphere leads to a substantial influence on transport coefficients. Unlike harmonic model diffusion coefficient no longer vanishes. A breakdown of the Stokes–Einstein relation is observed at low densities for a square-well fluid.     

Constant-volume heat capacity in a near-critical fluid from Monte Carlo simulations

We consider a near-critical fluid of hard spheres with short-range interactions (approximately r(-6)) and obtain its constant-volume heat capacity C(V) by means of Monte Carlo calculations in the canonical ensemble. The question addressed is whether or not the heat capacities of the finite-size systems studied in simulations can provide a reliable indication of nonclassical criticality. For the model fluid considered here this is found to be the case. The heat capacity along the critical isochore shows a peak near the critical temperature, with a system size dependence that is consistent with the known Ising universality class of the model. The relevance of our results to recent attempts to determine the universality class of ionic fluids through calculations of C(V) is briefly discussed.