Gashorption

Gashorption is a coined term used to describe the uptake of gas species by a material through a combination of absorption (dissolution into a phase) and adsorption (surface binding). The concept encompasses processes where gas molecules both dissolve in a liquid or permeate a solid matrix and adhere to internal surfaces or active sites, resulting in concurrent storage and interaction with the material.

In practice, gashorption is described by two related mechanisms. Absorption-dissolution refers to gas molecules entering and dispersing within a liquid or polymeric/solid matrix. Surface sorption refers to gas molecules binding to sites on or within pores, such as on pore walls or at specific functional groups. Because the term is not universally standardized, many researchers prefer to separate the phenomena into absorption and adsorption with explicit mechanism details, or to describe the combined behavior with coupled mass-transfer models.

Modeling approaches for gashorption often involve a combination of dissolution equilibria and surface isotherms, along with diffusion or transport within the material. Dissolved-gas concentrations may be described by Henry’s law or its extensions, while surface uptake is described by isotherms such as Langmuir or Freundlich. Kinetic treatments may account for film resistance, pore diffusion, and the rates of surface binding and unbinding.

Materials of interest include porous solids like activated carbon, zeolites, and certain polymers, as well as liquids or gels designed for gas capture and storage. Applications discussed in the literature include carbon dioxide capture, hydrogen or oxygen storage, and gas sensing, where both dissolution and surface interactions contribute to overall performance. See also adsorption, absorption, isotherm models, and gas solubility.