Difference between Adsorption and Absorption
The key differences between both adsorption and absorption are listed in the following table:
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Absorption |
Adsorption |
|---|---|
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It is the assimilation of the molecular system throughout the bulk of the solid or liquid medium. |
It is the accumulation of molecular species at the bottom instead of the liquid or solid. |
|
It is a bulk phenomenon. |
It is a surface phenomenon. |
|
It is an endothermic process |
It is an exothermic process |
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It is unaffected by temperature. |
It is influenced by low temperature |
|
It occurs at a uniform rate. |
It increases steadily and reaches equilibrium. |
|
It is constant throughout the medium. |
The Concentration at the bottom of the adsorbent is different from that in bulk. |
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Because of the availability of space and the nature of the particle, substances are absorbed into an absorbent. |
Substances are adsorbed onto the surface of an adsorbent because the adsorbent contains vacant spaces that encourage particle adhesion to the spaces. |
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The absorbed materials remain in the absorbent without interacting chemically with it. |
The adsorbed materials are held to the adsorbent by Van der Wall’s forces or covalent bonds. |
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Based on their chemical interactions with the phases, absorbing materials can be separated into different phases. |
Adsorbed materials can be separated by passing a new substance through the adsorbent’s surface and replacing the previously adsorbed material. |
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Absorption is used by a variety of living and non-living systems. Living systems, such as unicellular organisms, rely on the absorption phenomenon to obtain nutrients and water. Absorption is used for cold storage in non-living systems such as refrigerators. |
Adsorption is used in a variety of living and non-living systems. Adsorption is a phenomenon that living systems, such as viruses, use to attach to bacteria or other organisms. Adsorption chromatography, for example, uses the principle of adsorption to separate mixtures. |
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Adsorption vs Absorption
Adsorption and Absorption are the two important processes of physical chemistry that help in various industrial processes to manufacture and purification of various chemical compounds. While the two terms sound almost similar there exists a significant difference between them. Adsorption is a surface phenomenon where the molecules of one substance get attached to the surface of another substance. On the other hand, absorption is a bulk phenomenon in which the molecule of one compound soaks inside the body of another compound. In this article, we will learn, the definitions, mechanisms, types, and differences between adsorption and absorption in detail.
In surface chemistry, the bulk phases encountered may be pure compounds or solutions. The interface is typically a few molecules thick, but its area is determined by the size of the bulk phase particles. Many important phenomena occur at interfaces, including corrosion, electrode processes, heterogeneous catalysis, dissolution, and crystallization. Both sorption processes, adsorption, and absorption, are sorption processes.