Consider a system composed of a solid phase of calcium carbonate (CaCO3); a solid phase of calcium oxide (CaO); and a gaseous phase consisting of a mixture of CO2, CaCO3 vapor, and CaO vapor; all three constituents being present initially in arbitrary amounts. These are the substances that are present in a limekiln, where the reaction occurs.
CaCO3 CaO + CO2
(a) How many components are there, and what is the variance?
(b) Assuming the gaseous phase to be a mixture of ideal gases, show that
PCaOPCO2/PCaCO3 = K.
(c) If solid CaC03 is introduced into an evacuated chamber, how many components are there, and what is the variance?