Water Activities and Osmotic and Activity Coefficients of Aqueous Solutions of Nitrates at 25°C by the Hygrometric Method

The thermodynamic properties of LiNO₃(aq.), NaNO₃(aq.), KNO₃(aq.), NH₄NO₃(aq.), Mg(NO₃)₂(aq.), Ca(NO₃)₂(aq.), and Ba(NO₃)₂(aq.) have been determined at 25°C by the hygrometric method for molalities, ranging from 0.1 mol-kg^–1 to saturation. From measurements of droplet diameters of reference solutions NaCl(aq.) or LiCl(aq.), the dependence of relative humidity on solute concentration was determined. The data on the relative humidity allow deduction of water activities and the osmotic coefficients at various molalities. Osmotic coefficient data are described by Pitzer's ion interaction model. The ion interaction parameters were also determined for each of the salts studied. With these parameters, the solute activity coefficients can be predicted. These results are used to calculate the excess Gibbs energy for these aqueous electrolyte nitrates. Our present results are compared with published thermodynamic data.