Statistical physics approach for modeling adsorption isotherms and enhancing desalination efficiency using silica gel/water system

In this research, the main objective is the employing of the statistical physics approach based on the grand canonical partition function to provide physico-chemical insights of the adsorption process at molecular level for desalination application. Statistical physics models have been employed to elucidate the adsorption process and delineate its physico-chemical parameters. Our outcomes demonstrated that the double-layer model with two energies successfully exhibits a strong correlation with the experimental isotherms of Water/Silica Gel system. Estimations of adsorption energies and enthalpy values unequivocally pointed out that the docking mechanism is exothermic and of a physisorptive nature. The steric analysis revealed that water can be adsorbed on Silica-Gel via a total non-parallel orientation. In the quest to improve desalination efficiency through adsorption techniques, the coefficient of performance was examined by analyzing changes in thermodynamic functions, resulting in a value of 0.747. The coefficient of quantitative efficiency was found equal to 0.313 for the Water/Silica Gel.