An experimental investigation on the influence of phenol on the solubility of CO 2 in aqueous solutions of NaOH

Experimental results are presented for the solubility of CO 2 in an aqueous solution of phenol and NaOH (molalties in water: phenol: 0.5; NaOH: 1.0) at (314, 354, and 395) K and pressures up to 10 MPa. The experimental work extends recent investigations on the influence of phenol as well as of (phenol + NaCl) on the solubility of CO 2 in water. In contrast to those previous investigations, the strong electrolyte reacts with carbon dioxide and also with phenol. The experimental results are compared with predictions from a thermodynamic model. That model combines a model for the “chemical” solubility of CO 2 in aqueous solutions of NaOH with a model for the “physical” solubility of CO 2 in aqueous solutions of phenol. An extension is introduced to account for the chemical reaction between the weak acid phenol and the strong base sodium hydroxide. The prediction results nicely agree with the new experimental data. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J , 61: 2832–2840, 2015