Theoretical models for the thermo-gravitational separation process in porous media filled by N-component mixtures.

The aim of this work is to present a theoretical analysis of the separation of an N-component mixture. In this study, two analytical models explaining the thermo-gravitational separation of components in N-component mixtures for vertical cavity filled by a porous medium are presented and assessed. The basic state and the separation are expressed in terms of the separation ratio, and the Lewis, cross-diffusion and Rayleigh numbers. Our computational analysis confirms that, for the given values of the mass fractions, thermodiffusion can be measured with a thermo-gravitational column, strongly supporting the experimentally determined transport coefficients.