On the thermodynamic consistency of the symmetric Poisson-Boltzmann equation in primitive model electrolytes

Abstract

The study of electrolyte solutions poses several interesting features and challenges. Their study is important, not only theoretically but for practical reasons. Transport processes occur within the body as ionic exchanges in solutions. The measurement of chemical and thermodynamic properties of electrolyte solutions is important for the success of many industrial processes. These and other reasons have contributed to make the study of electrolyte solutions an active research area in physics and electrochemistry. Their study is complicated because we must consider several kinds of interactions when we try to describe their properties: solvent-solvent interactions, present in the study of pure liquids, plus the ion-solvent and ion-ion interactions that appear due to the presence of the dissociated ions.