The key difference between cricondentherm and critical temperature is that cricondentherm refers to the maximum temperature at which liquids and vapor tend to coexist, whereas critical temperature refers to the temperature at which a substance in one phase of matter has the same density, pressure, and temperature as in another phase of matter
Cricondentherm and critical temperature are important chemical concepts that describe the coexistence of different phases of matter at the same time.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Cricondentherm
3. What is Critical Temperature
4. Cricondentherm vs Critical Temperature in Tabular Form
5. Summary – Cricondentherm vs Critical Temperature
What is Cricondentherm?
Cricondentherm is the maximum temperature at which liquids and vapor tend to coexist. In other words, at temperatures that are higher than cricondentherm, only one phase of matter exists at any pressure (two phases cannot coexist). Typically, the liquid-vapor boundary tends to terminate at a critical point with a critical temperature and critical pressure.
For instance, if the temperature of a gas well exceeds the cricondentherm, then there will be only dry gas existing in the reservoir throughout the production. In contrast, if the temperature of the gas well is below the cricondentherm, retrograde condensation occurs where oil condenses with decreasing pressure rather than increasing pressure.
What is Critical Temperature?
The critical temperature (or critical point) of a substance is the temperature at the endpoint of the phase equilibrium curve of that substance. A phase equilibrium curve or a phase diagram is the graph of pressure versus temperature in which the phase changes of the substance are shown. This shows the temperatures and pressure at which the substance exists as a solid, liquid, or gas. The critical point is the temperature and pressure at which the liquid and vapour phases coexist.
The temperature and pressure at the critical point are named critical temperature (Tc) and critical pressure (Pc). As shown in the above image, the lines between two phases are known as boundaries. A critical point indicates the point at which line boundaries vanish. For instance, the critical temperature of water is 647 K.
Knowing the critical point of a substance is sometimes very important. For example, a gas can never be condensed at temperatures and pressures above its critical point. This is because the intermolecular forces between gas molecules are weakened at very high temperatures since the kinetic energy of those molecules is increased.
What is the Difference Between Cricondentherm and Critical Temperature?
Cricondentherm and critical temperature are important chemical concepts that describe the coexistence of different phases of matter at the same time. The key difference between cricondentherm and critical temperature is that cricondentherm refers to the maximum temperature at which liquids and vapor tend to coexist, whereas critical temperature refers to the temperature at which a substance in one phase of matter has the same density, pressure, and temperature as in another phase of matter.
The below infographic presents the differences between cricondentherm and critical temperature in tabular form for side by side comparison.
Summary – Cricondentherm vs Critical Temperature
Cricondentherm is the maximum temperature at which liquids and vapor tend to coexist. The critical temperature (or critical point) of a substance is the temperature at the endpoint of the phase equilibrium curve of that substance. The key difference between cricondentherm and critical temperature is that cricondentherm refers to the maximum temperature at which liquids and vapor tend to coexist whereas critical temperature refers to the temperature at which a substance in one phase of matter has the same density, pressure and temperature as in another phase of matter
Reference:
1. “Critical Point.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Image Courtesy:
1. Carbon dioxide pressure-temperature phase diagram” By Ben FinneyMark Jacobs – Commons, Image: Carbon dioxide pressure-temperature phase diagram.jpg (CC0) via Commons Wikimedia