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Thermodynamic and structural investigations of condensates of small molecules in mesopores
Publikationstyp
Journal Article
Date Issued
2008-02-01
Sprache
English
Author(s)
Volume
222
Issue
2/3
Start Page
257
End Page
285
Citation
Zeitschrift fur Physikalische Chemie 222 (2/3): 257-285 (2008-02-01)
Publisher DOI
Scopus ID
Publisher
de Gruyter
Liquids and solids consisting of small, mainly van-der-Waals interacting building blocks, such as Ar, Kr, N2, O2, and CO, are among the most simple systems of condensed matter imaginable. As we shall demonstrate in this microreview on our work sponsored within the Sonderforschungsbereich 277, these cryoliquids condensed in mesoporous hosts with typical mean pore diameters of 7 to 10 nm are also particularly suitable for the investigation of fundamental questions regarding the thermodynamics and structure of spatially mesoscale confined systems. An exploration of phase transitions like the vapour-liquid (capillary condensation), the vapour-solid (capillary sublimation), the liquid-solid (freezing and melting) and some solid-solid transformations of such pore condensates reveals a remarkably rich, sometimes perplexing phenomenology. We will show, however, that by experiments combining sorption isotherm, X-ray and neutron diffraction, calorimetric and optical transmission measurements, and by referring to concepts, intermediate between surface and bulk physics, a deeper understanding of the mesoscale mechanisms ultimatively responsible for this complex behaviour can indeed be accomplished, both on a qualitative and a quantitative level.
Subjects
Capillary condensation
Capillary sublimation
Mesopores
Phase transition
DDC Class
530: Physik
More Funding Information
We appreciated the financial support of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft.