A 2.00 x 10^4 -liter storage tank was taken out of service to repair and reattach a feed line damaged in a collision with a tanker. The tank was drained and then opened several days later for a welder to enter and perform the required work. No one realized, however that a large volume of of liquid nonane (C9H2O) remained in a collection sump at the bottom of the tank arfter the draining had been completed. Nonane has a lower explosion limit of 0.80 mole% and an upper explosion limit of 2.90 mole%* (i. e., nonane-air mixtures at 1 atm can explode when exposed to a spark or flame if the nonane mole fraction is between the two given values). Required:
a. Estimate the temperature at which the system would have to equilibrate in order for the gas in the tank to be at the lower explosion liimit (P=1 atm).
b. How many liters of liquid nonane would be required to evaporate in order to meet the lower explosion limit?
c. Use the Antoine equation (6.1-4) to estimate the temperature at which the system would have to equilibrate in order for the nonane in the tank gas to reach a mole fraction of 0.012?