Prediction of wax precipitation with new modified regular solution model

Abstract

In present work, an improved regular solution model is established, based on the concept of regular solution and local composition theory. The local volume fractions φij are considered to include the influence of interaction energy between molecules on molecules' local distribution. A new expression for molar excess Gibbs free energy (gE) is developed for the calculation of activity coefficients. Regular solution (RS), Wilson (W) and modified regular solution (MRS) are used for the non-ideality of solid phase and regular solution is adopted for liquid phase. Compared with the experimental data of binary, ternary and quaternary n-alkane systems, the advantage of RS-MRS is illustrated, with the best predictions of wax appearance temperature (WAT) and solid precipitation curve, which proves that the non-random molecules distribution caused by interaction energy between molecules is essential for gE. It is the application of φij that enhances the prediction accuracy of RS-MRS.