By Donald Isife.
Drying Agents
If you have been looking for a short but detailed note on drying agents and the major gases that they dry respectively, then you are on the right page.
In the simplest described definition, a drying agent, as it pertains to industrial and chemical processes, is a term used to define any substance (mostly chemicals) that tends to remove water from another substance (mainly a compound) that is at the time in a solution.
Below is the list of the drying agents and the gases they dry;
Drying agents Gases
1. conc. hydrogen tetraoxosulphate (vi) (H2SO4): dries all gases except ammonia (NH3) and hydrogen sulfide (H2S).
2. Fused calcium chloride (CaCl2): dries all gases except ammonia (NH3).
3. Quicklime (CaO): It is used for drying ammonia (NH3) in particular.
4. Phosphorus (v) oxide: dries all gases except ammonia (NH3).
5. Silica gel: dries all gases.
The above-aforementioned shows that there is only one drying agent that can be used for the drying of all gases. Remember that drying agents are mainly hygroscopic substances and are also called desiccants.
I hope you enjoyed this bit of enlightenment, come again next time.