Nickel thermodynamics

Over what range of pH is nickel thermodynamically stable in deaerated water if aN.2+ = 10 6 ... 

The first HCN addition (eq. 3) occurs at practical rates above 70°C under sufficient pressure to keep butadiene condensed in solution and produces the 1,4- and 1,2-addition products (3-pentenenitrile [4635-87-4] 3PN, and 2-meth5i-3-butenenitrile [16529-56-9] 2M3BN) in a 2 to 1 ratio. Fortunately, thermodynamics favors 3PN (about 20 1) and 2M3BN may be isomerized to 3PN (eq. 4) in the presence of a nickel catalyst. 

Thermodynamically, the formation of methane is favored at low temperatures. The equilibrium constant is 10 at 300 K and is 10 ° at 1000 K (113). High temperatures and catalysts ate needed to achieve appreciable rates of carbon gasification, however. This reaction was studied in the range 820—1020 K, and it was found that nickel catalysts speed the reaction by three to four orders of magnitude (114). The Hterature for the carbon-hydrogen reaction has been surveyed (115). 

Ma.nufa.cture. Nickel carbonyl can be prepared by the direct combination of carbon monoxide and metallic nickel (77). The presence of sulfur, the surface area, and the surface activity of the nickel affect the formation of nickel carbonyl (78). The thermodynamics of formation and reaction are documented (79). Two commercial processes are used for large-scale production (80). An atmospheric method, whereby carbon monoxide is passed over nickel sulfide and freshly reduced nickel metal, is used in the United Kingdom to produce pure nickel carbonyl (81). The second method, used in Canada, involves high pressure CO in the formation of iron and nickel carbonyls the two are separated by distillation (81). Very high pressure CO is required for the formation of cobalt carbonyl and a method has been described where the mixed carbonyls are scmbbed with ammonia or an amine and the cobalt is extracted as the ammine carbonyl (82). A discontinued commercial process in the United States involved the reaction of carbon monoxide with nickel sulfate solution. 

This decomposition is thermodynamically favored by decreasing temperature and increasing pressure (28). Decomposition is extremely slow below 673 K in the absence of a catalyst however, between 673—873 K many surfaces, particularly iron (29), cobalt, and nickel (30), promote the disproportionation reaction. 

To fully understand the formation of the N13S2 scale under certain gas conditions, a brief description needs to be given on the chemical aspects of the protective (chromium oxide) Ci 203/(nickel oxide) NiO scales that form at elevated temperatures. Under ideal oxidizing conditions, the alloy Waspaloy preferentially forms a protective oxide layer of NiO and Ci 203 The partial pressure of oxygen is such that these scales are thermodynamically stable and a condition of equilibrium is observed between the oxidizing atmosphere and the scale. Even if the scale surface is damaged or removed, the oxidizing condition of the atmosphere would preferentially reform the oxide scales. 

The work on iron-nickel alloys has described shock-compression measurements of the compressibility of fee 28.5-at. % Ni Fe that show a well defined, pressure-induced, second-order ferromagnetic to paramagnetic transition. From these measurements, a complete description is obtained of the thermodynamic variables that change at the transition. The results provide a more complete description of the thermodynamic effects of the change in the magnetic interactions with pressure than has been previously available. The work demonstrates how shock compression can be used as an explicit, quantitative tool for the study of pressure sensitive magnetic interactions. 

Sulfur compounds, whether organic or inorganic in nature, cause sulfidation in susceptible materials. The sulfide film, which forms on the surface of much con-stmction materials at low temperatures, becomes friable and melts at higher temperatures. The presence of molten sulfides (especially nickel sulfide) on a metal surface promotes the rapid conversion to metal sulfides at temperatures where these sulfides are thermodynamically stable. High-alloy materials such as 25% Cr, 20% Ni alloys are widely used, but these represent a compromise between sulfidation resistance and mechanical properties. Aluminum and similar diffusion coatings can be of use. 

The fact that oxides can exist as metastable phases is illustrated by the Ni-HjO diagram (Fig. 1.18) in which the curves for the various oxides of nickel have been extrapolated into the acid region of Ni stability, and this diagram emphasises the fact that nickel can be passivated outside the region of thermodynamic stability of the oxides". 

Certainly a thermodynamically stable oxide layer is more likely to generate passivity. However, the existence of the metastable passive state implies that an oxide him may (and in many cases does) still form in solutions in which the oxides are very soluble. This occurs for example, on nickel, aluminium and stainless steel, although the passive corrosion rate in some systems can be quite high. What is required for passivity is the rapid formation of the oxide him and its slow dissolution, or at least the slow dissolution of metal ions through the him. The potential must, of course be high enough for oxide formation to be thermodynamically possible. With these criteria, it is easily understood that a low passive current density requires a low conductivity of ions (but not necessarily of electrons) within the oxide. 

Nickel is thermodynamically stable in neutral and moderately alkaline solutions although not in acidic or strongly alkaline solutions. 

Extensive studies have been carried out by Giggins and Pettit and by Vasantasree and Hocking on a range of nickel chromium alloys with up to 50% alloying addition. Generally the principles outlined above can be used to interpret the experimental observations, where the thermodynamics of the reaction are a major factor determining the rate of attack, depending upon whether oxide or sulphide is the stable phase. 

The steel will be considered to be an ideal ternary solution, and therefore at all temperatures a, = 0-18, Ani = 0-08 and flpc = 0-74. Owing to the Y-phase stabilisation of iron by the nickel addition it will be assumed that the steel, at equilibrium, is austenitic at all temperatures, and the thermodynamics of dilute solutions of carbon in y iron only are considered. 

Gold-copper, alloy (Au5Cu5, AuBCuB(S)), calculation of thermodynamic quantities, 136, 142 solid solution (CuAu), 129 Gold-lead, alloy (Au5Pb5), calculation of thermodynamic quantities, 136 Gold-nickel, alloy (Au5Ni8), calculation of thermodynamic quantities, 136, 142... 

This paper surveys the field of methanation from fundamentals through commercial application. Thermodynamic data are used to predict the effects of temperature, pressure, number of equilibrium reaction stages, and feed composition on methane yield. Mechanisms and proposed kinetic equations are reviewed. These equations cannot prove any one mechanism however, they give insight on relative catalyst activity and rate-controlling steps. Derivation of kinetic equations from the temperature profile in an adiabatic flow system is illustrated. Various catalysts and their preparation are discussed. Nickel seems best nickel catalysts apparently have active sites with AF 3 kcal which accounts for observed poisoning by sulfur and steam. Carbon laydown is thermodynamically possible in a methanator, but it can be avoided kinetically by proper catalyst selection. Proposed commercial methanation systems are reviewed. 

Sulfur. It is not readily predictable from existing thermodynamic data that sulfur would be a poison of nickel catalysts. The action of sulfur is undoubtedly through the reaction of hydrogen sulfide with nickel, according to ... 

The equilibrium ratios of hydrogen-to-hydrogen sulfide for the reaction, derived (34) from available thermodynamic data (35), are plotted in Figure 10 as a function of temperature. When Ph2/Ph2s over the catalyst is less than the equilibrium value, the nickel can be sulfided and hence poisoned. Conversely, when this ratio is greater than the equi-... 

There is little data available to quantify these factors. The loss of catalyst surface area with high temperatures is well-known (136). One hundred hours of dry heat at 900°C are usually sufficient to reduce alumina surface area from 120 to 40 m2/g. Platinum crystallites can grow from 30 A to 600 A in diameter, and metal surface area declines from 20 m2/g to 1 m2/g. Crystal growth and microstructure changes are thermodynamically favored (137). Alumina can react with copper oxide and nickel oxide to form aluminates, with great loss of surface area and catalytic activity. The loss of metals by carbonyl formation and the loss of ruthenium by oxide formation have been mentioned before. 

Rate constants and thermodynamic activation parameters. The rate constant for the reaction between C2H4 and HCN catalyzed by a nickel(0) complex was studied over a range of -50 to -10 °C in toluene.31 These authors give the activation parameters A//1 = 36.7kJmor andAS = -145 J mol-1 K I when the reaction rate was expressed using concentrations in the units molL-1 and time in the unit seconds. 

The reduction is thermodynamically favored, because the standard potential of the couple Cu2+/Cu is positive (E° = +0.34 V). Metals with negative standard potentials, such as zinc (E° = —0.76 V) and nickel (E° = —0.23 V), cannot be extracted hydrometallurgically. 

Nickel, K., Riedel, R., and Petzow, G., Thermodynamic and Experimental Study of High-Purity Aluminum Nitride Formation from Aluminum Chloride by Chemical Vapor Deposition, /. Amer. Ceram. Soc., 72(10) 1804-1810 (1989)... 

The successful rationalization of these transition-metal inverse spinel structures in terms of the relative LFSE s of tetrahedral and octahedral sites is another attractive vindication of ligand-field theory as applied to structure and thermodynamic properties. Once again, however, we must be very careful not to extrapolate this success. Thus, we have a clear prediction that LSFE contributions favour tetrahedral over octahedral coordination, except for d" with n = 0, 5 or 10. We do not expect to rationalize the relative paucity of tetrahedral nickel(ii) species relative to octahedral ones on this basis, however. Many factors contribute to this, the most obvious and important one being the greater stabilization engendered by the formation of six bonds in octahedral species relative to only four bonds in tetrahedral ones. Compared with that, the differences in LSFE s is small beer. Why , one asks, was our rationalization of spinel structures so successful when we neglected to include consideration of the bond count The answer is that cancellations within the extended lattice of the spinels tend to diminish the importance of this term. 

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