In situ measurement of reaction volume and calculation of pH of weak acid buffer solutions under high pressure.

Direct measurements of reaction volume, so far, have been limited to atmospheric pressure. This study describes a method for in situ reaction volume measurements under pressure using a variable volume piezometer. Reaction volumes for protonic ionization of weak acid buffering agents (MES, citric acid, sulfanilic acid, and phosphoric acid) were measured in situ under pressure up to 400 MPa at 25 °C. The methodology involved initial separation of buffering agents within the piezometer using gelatin capsules. Under pressure, the volume of the reactants was measured at 25 °C, and the contents were heated to 40 °C to dissolve the gelatin and allow the reaction to occur, and cooled to 25 °C, where the volume of products was measured. Reaction volumes were used to calculate pH of the buffer solutions as a function of pressure. The results show that the measured reaction volumes as well as the calculated pH values generally quite agree with their respective theoretically predicted values up to 100 MPa. The results of this study highlight the need for a comprehensive theory to describe the pressure behavior of ionization reactions in realistic systems especially at higher pressures.