On the Kinetic Theory of Dense Fluids. XIV. Experimental and Theoretical Studies of Thermal Conductivity in Liquid Ar, Kr, Xe, and CH4
Abstract
In this paper we report experimental and theoretical studies of the thermal conductivity of liquid Ar, Kr, Xe, and CH4, in the temperature range 90°—235°K and the pressure range 1–500 atm. It is found that: (a) The magnitude, the temperature dependence, and the pressure dependence of the thermal conductivity all decrease in the following order: CH4, Ar, Kr, Xe. (b) The gross behavior of the coefficient of thermal conductivity is the inverse of the behavior of the self-diffusion coefficient: κ increases (whereas D decreases) as the pressure increases along an isotherm and κ decreases (whereas D increases) as the temperature increases along an isobar. (c) The statistical theory of Rice and Allnatt leads to easily interpreted analytic formulas for the coefficient of thermal conductivity. (d) The theory of Rice and Allnatt leads to predictions in quantitative agreement with experiment. The importance of accurate pair correlation functions, the relative roles of strong repulsive and soft attractive potentials, and implications of the Rice—Allnatt theory are briefly discussed.