Imperfect Gases

In this Chapter we will investigate the effects of molecular interactions on the form of the law of mass action for equilibria in the gas phase. The volume of a gaseous system is directly connected with the number of molecules, and therefore a knowledge of the actual equation of state is important for the study of reactions in gases. In an ideal gas the volume of a system at constant pressure is linearly dependent on the number of molecules. A large number of empirical equations of state have been suggested for the description of real gases, among which the van der Waals equation is the most famous.