Solubility, Capacity And Stability Of Species In Metallurgical Slags And Glasses

The concepts of capacity and basicity have proved extremely useful in dealing with a wide range of solute species in metallurgical slags, and as a result have been widely applied. These two concepts are reviewed, and it is suggested that the Lewis approach to basicity has much to commend it. In some cases, it appears that the term capacity has been used without due consideration being given to the nature of the solution being formed, or even to whether a true solution was being formed at all. This paper proposes a rigorous definition of capacity, based on the true nature of the solution process in slags and glasses, and briefly reviews the repercussions of this approach on data available in the literature and the limitations which it may impose on future investigations in this area.