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First-order phase transitions of binary mixtures at the given pressure (P) and temperature (T) are studied by taking into account the composition fluctuations. Isothermal-isobaric semigrand canonical ensemble is adopted to find the relations among the total number of molecules, the composition fluctuations and Gibbs free energy density. By combining two identical subsystems of mixtures successively, the free energy density is transformed until being stable and its linear segments represent phase transitions. A new method is developed to calculate the phase equilibriums of binary mixtures. The method handles multiple types and number of phase equilibriums at single time and its solutions are physically justified. One example is shown for calculating the phase diagram of binary Lennard-Jones mixture. It demonstrates that the fluctuations of the total number of molecules in mixtures are fundamental behind phase transitions and the van der Waals loops in Gibbs free energy are reasonable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A theory about first-order phase transition of pure fluids is proposed. The theory is developed by combining grand canonical ensemble with density functional for homogeneous fluids. It is based on the fact that the grand partition function of one macroscopic volume is the product of the grand partition functions of its subvolumes. Density fluctuations of molecules determine the relation between the grand partition function and the free energy density. By combining pairs of subvolumes successively, the free energy density is transformed and rapidly becomes stationary. The stationary curve versus molecule density is convex and its linear segments represent phase transitions. The transform leads to the new grand canonical method to calculate phase equilibrium, which is more robust than classic ones. The transform suggests that classical van der Waals loop is physical and essential to phase transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report a perturbative density functional theory for quantitative description of the structural and thermodynamic properties of square-well fluids in the bulk or at inhomogeneous conditions. The free-energy functional combines a modified fundamental measure theory to account for the short-range repulsion and a quadratic density expansion for the long-range attraction. The long-correlation effects are taken into account by using analytical expressions of the direct correlation functions of bulk fluids recently obtained from the first-order mean-spherical approximation. The density functional theory has been calibrated by extensive comparison with simulation data from this work and from the literature. The theory yields good agreement with simulation results for the radial distribution function of bulk systems and for the density profiles of square-well fluids near the surfaces of spherical cavities or in slit pores over a broad range of the parameter space and thermodynamic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The general solution of the Ornstein–Zernike equation presented by Tang and Lu [J. Chem. Phys. 99, 9828 (1993)] is further discussed. By applying the Hilbert transform, the first-order factorization and direct correlation functions (DCF) are generally and analytically obtained, with emphasis on the mean spherical approximation (MSA) for Yukawa fluids. These analytical results are employed to produce a new DCF for hard spheres through integrating with the previous generalized mean spherical approximation [J. Chem. Phys. 103, 7463 (1995)]. The new DCF is of simple analytical form and remedies the deficiencies of its Percus–Yevick version at high densities. Comparisons between the first-order and full MSA solutions are also made. It is shown that the two solutions give very close results for thermodynamic properties in the phase stable region and phase coexistence curves away from the critical point. At unstable states, the first-order MSA looks more advantageous when applications go beyond homogeneous. © 2003 American Institute of Physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sensitivity of thermodynamics to the Barker–Henderson (BH) diameter for the Lennard-Jones (LJ) potential is discussed, which covers both its approximation in calculation and improvement in rationality. With regarding to the approximation, pressure and internal energy for the LJ fluid, LJ chains and LJ chain mixtures are investigated. It is found that internal energy is much more sensitive to an approximation to the diameter than pressure for pure fluids, and both pressure and internal energy are very sensitive to the diameter for mixtures. It is also found that the approximating expression given by Cotterman et al. (1986) covers the widest range of temperatures. The rationality of the BH diameter itself at very high temperatures and densities is also analyzed. Through a functional expansion of Helmholtz free energy, we conclude that a density-dependent BH diameter is fundamentally more appropriate. The proposed diameter yields almost the same results as the original BH diameter at normal conditions and remedies its deficiencies at extreme ones. The density-dependent diameter provides a convenient way to study the LJ systems undergoing gas-solid phase transition or freezing. © 2002 American Institute of Physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Laplace transform of the average radial distribution function of hard-sphere chains is obtained following the approximation suggested by Chiew [Mol. Phys. 73, 359 (1991)]. The transform expression is of a simple analytical form. The inverse Laplace transform is made analytically. The resulting expression is capable of calculating directly the radial distribution function of hard-sphere chains for any value of r. © 1996 American Institute of Physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The solution of the first-order Ornstein–Zernike equation is applied to improve the Percus–Yevick radial distribution function (RDF) of hard spheres, where the direct correlation function is postulated to hold the Yukawa form outside the hard core. Thermodynamic consistency is imposed to determine the parameters in the postulation. Very simple analytical expressions for the Laplace transform of the RDF are obtained for hard spheres and hard sphere mixtures. The resulting RDFs are compared satisfactorily with computer simulation data. © 1995 American Institute of Physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analytical expressions of the Helmholtz free energy, internal energy, and compressibility for the square-well fluid are developed from the first-order solution of the mean spherical approximation with further application of the Hilbert transform proposed previously. The developed expressions, including that of the first-order radial distribution function, are satisfactorily compared with the Monte Carlo simulation data available in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the assumption of the mean spherical approximation, analytical expressions of the first-order radial distribution function are obtained for the square-well, Lennard-Jones, and Kihara potentials with a hard core through a complex-plane analysis. The developed expression yields good agreement with the available computer simulation data for the radial distribution function of the Lennard-Jones fluid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A general solution of the Ornstein–Zernike (OZ) equation was obtained by combining the perturbation theory with the application of the Hilbert transform. The development was based on the Percus–Yevick approximation or the mean spherical approximation for potentials consisting of a hard core and an arbitrary tail function. All terms of the solution are analytical and involve only the potential function and the hard sphere quantities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A correction to the article "Direct correlation function for the square-well potential" in the 2007 issue is presented.

On the basis of the first-order mean spherical approximation (FMSA) theory the behavior of Sutherland fluids with a number of parameters (gamma=3.1-36) is investigated. The investigation includes its modification by the simplified exponent approximation, renormalization group (RG) transformation, and density functional theory (DFT). For long-range parameters, the original FMSA is found sufficiently good to describe the global phase behavior, including inside the critical region. For short-range parameters, the modified FMSA by the simplified exponent approximation outside the critical region and RG transform inside the critical region are applied. For extremely short-range forces, the success is achieved by its combination with the DFT. This work gives a general sense about the capability of a theory for different ranges of potential, as well as for different thermodynamic states.

An analytical expression of direct correlation function (DCF) for the square-well potential is developed. The development is based on the first-order mean spherical approximation and its extension to the functionality of the existing radial distribution function. The developed DCF is a combination of a special polynomial function introduced in this work. The combination is piecewise in four regions [0, lambda - 1], [lambda - 1,2 - lambda], [2 - lambda,1], and [1,lambda] for lambda < 1.5 or [0,2 - lambda], [2 - lambda, lambda - 1], [lambda - 1, 1], and [1, lambda] for lambda > 1.5. In addition, the DCF is continuous to second-order inside hard core and discontinuous at r=1 and r=lambda outside it. The behavior of DCF is analyzed by some detail calculations.

The recently proposed first-order mean spherical approximation (FMSA) [Y. Tang, J. Chem. Phys. 121, 10605 (2004)] for inhomogeneous fluids is extended to study the phase behavior of nanoconfined Lennard-Jones fluids, which is consistent with the phase equilibria calculation of the corresponding bulk fluid. With a combination of fundamental measure theory, FMSA provides Helmholtz free energy and direct correlation function to formulate density functional theory, which implementation is as easy as the mean-field theory. Following previous success in predicting density profiles inside slit pores, this work is focused specially on the vapor-liquid equilibrium of the Lennard-Jones fluids inside these pores. It is found that outside the critical region FMSA predicts well the equilibrium diagram of slit pores with the sizes of 5.0, 7.5, and 10 molecular diameters by comparing with available computer simulation data. As a quantitative method, FMSA can be treated as an extension from its bulk calculation, while the mean-field theory is only qualitative, as its bulk version.

The recently proposed first-order mean-spherical approximation (FMSA) [Y. Tang, J. Chem. Phys. 121, 10605 (2004)] for inhomogeneous fluids is extended to the study of interfacial phenomena. Computation is performed for the Lennard-Jones fluid, in which all phase equilibria properties and direct correlation function for density-functional theory are developed consistently and systematically from FMSA. Three functional methods, including fundamental measure theory for the repulsive force, local-density approximation, and square-gradient approximation, are applied in this interfacial investigation. Comparisons with the latest computer simulation data indicate that FMSA is satisfactory in predicting surface tension, density profile, as well as relevant phase equilibria. Furthermore, this work strongly suggests that FMSA is very capable of unifying homogeneous and inhomogeneous fluids, as well as those behaviors outside and inside the critical region within one framework.

The first-order mean spherical approximation (FMSA) theory proposed by Tang et al. [Fluid Phase Equilib., 134, 21(1997)] is applied for studying several typical Yukawa fluids, including attractive, repulsive, and multi-Yukawa cases. The FMSA study is particularly advantageous in providing thermodynamics and structure information in a simple, analytical, and consistent manner. Comparisons with the latest reported computer simulation data for compressibility factor, internal energy, and radial distribution function show that FMSA performs very well and the performance is very close to the full MSA and to several other theories, developed individually for the above-mentioned cases or properties. The present study provides solid evidence to support FMSA applications to more complex fluids.

The first-order mean-spherical approximation (FMSA) [Y. Tang, J. Chem. Phys., 118, 4140 (2003)] is extended to the studies of inhomogeneous fluids by combining with Rosenfeld's perturbative method [Y. Rosenfeld, J. Chem. Phys. 98, 8126 (1993)]. In the extension, the key input-direct correlation function of FMSA-is applied to constructing the free energy density functional. Preserving its high fidelity at the bulk limit, the FMSA shows satisfactory performance for Yukawa fluids near hard and attractive walls. The results are better than or comparable to several other theories reported before for the geometry. The FMSA is found, in particular, more satisfactory than the traditional mean-field theory for predicting density profiles around hard walls. The FMSA is also compared with the full MSA for inhomogeneous fluids, showing no appreciable differences. The inhomogeneous FMSA goes successfully through the self-consistency test for reproducing the radial distribution function of the bulk Yukawa fluid. As far as the computation is concerned, the FMSA can be executed much faster than any nonmean-field theories, and the speed is virtually identical to that of the mean-field theory., ((c) 2004 American Institute of Physics.)

On the basis of White's theory, an improved renormalization group (RG) theory is developed for chain bonding fluids inside the critical region. Outside the critical region, the statistical associating fluid theory based on the first-order mean sphere approximation [Fluid Phase Equilibria 171, 27 (2000)] is adopted and all the microscopic parameters are taken directly from its earlier application of real fluids. Inside the critical region, the RG transformation for long-range density fluctuation is derived in the k space, which illustrates explicitly the contributions from the mean-field term, the local density fluctuation, and the nonlocal density fluctuation. The RG theory is applied to describe physical behavior of ten n alkanes (C1-C10) both near to and far from the critical point. With no additional parameters for chain bonding fluids, good results are obtained for critical specific heat and phase coexistence curves and the resulting critical exponents are in good agreement with the reported nonclassic values.