Dispersion and Absorption of Sound in Imperfect Gases in General Chemical Equilibrium and Its Application to Chemical Kinetics

Previously, it was shown that there occur the dispersion and the absorption of sound owing to the chemical reaction in the gas in general chemical equilibrium such as aA+bB+···⇄qQ+rR+···. As the velocity and the absorption coefficient of sound are affected predominantly by the imperfection of the gas over other factors, the case of imperfect gases is considered. The velocity and the absorption coefficient are derived from the complex velocity of sound, and the characteristic of the dispersion and absorption curves are examined. The velocity and the absorption coefficient of sound are formulated in terms of the pressure, the density, the virial coefficients, the equilibrium constant, namely, the composition, the reaction heat at a constant volume, the molar heat at a constant volume, and the rate constant of the chemical reaction. By measuring the velocity and the absorption coefficient of sound, it is possible to calculate the rate constant of the chemical reaction and the reaction heat. As special cases, the formulas for the perfect gas and for a mixture of imperfect gases in which no chemical reactions occur, are derived. As an example of the calculation, the case of the dissociation equilibrium A⇄B+B was treated.