Modeling sorption isotherms of volatile organic chemical mixtures in model and natural solids

Parameters from single-component isotherm models were used in multicomponent isotherm models to predict the aqueous phase sorption of trichloroethylene (TCE) in the presence of tetrachloroethylene (PCE) in four zeolites, Tenax, and three natural solids. The Langmuir, the Polanyi-Dubinin, and the Freundlich or the Langmuir-Freundlich isotherm models were used to simulate single-component sorption in zeolites. The Langmuir two-site, the Polanyi-Dubinin two-site, and the Freundlich or the Langmuir-Freundlich isotherm models were used to simulate single-component sorption in Tenax and natural solids. Two-site models have been used previously to model sorption in soils and sediments, and they combine an adsorption component (e.g., Langmuir) with a linear partitioning component. By using parameters from the different single-component isotherm models, the multicomponent Langmuir, the ideal adsorbed solution theory, and the Polanyi theory were each used to predict multicomponent sorption. In general, the ability to predict TCE sorption in the presence of PCE depended more on the choice of the single-component model than the multicomponent model, and better results were obtained when the Freundlich or the Langmuir-Freundlich isotherm was used for single-component sorption. This suggests that the more mechanistically based Langmuir and Polanyi-type models may not adequately describe the distribution of adsorption sites in some model and natural solids. The Freundlich or the Langmuir-Freundlich model, although empirical, has greater flexibility in characterizing sorbent heterogeneity and results in better multicomponent model predictions. However, this last statement is tenuous, because more solids must be tested against various model combinations.