Calculation methods for multicomponent adsorption equilibria

The knowledge of multicomponent adsorption equilibria is of great importance for the industrial design and application of adsorptive purification and separation processes. As the experimental determination of the required data is time‐consuming and costly, theoretical help is desirable. This contribution presents and assesses the most common theoretical approaches to the calculation of multicomponent adsorption equilibria. The models are based on the assumption of an adsorbed solution, extension of the volume filling of micropores theory or statistical thermodynamics. These models are applied to different adsorptive/adsorbent systems with ideal and non‐ideal equilibrium behaviour. It is established that, at low coverages of adsorbent surfaces, all theories provide good estimates of the adsorbed phase composition and total loading while, at high saturations, no model is completely satisfactory.