Concentration dependence of the distribution coefficient for macromolecules in porous media

Abstract Partitioning of macromolecules between pore and bulk solutions directly affects both equilibrium and transport processes such as exclusion chromatography and movement of solutes through porous media. Because of interactions between macromolecules and the pore wall, the variation of the macromolecule activity with concentration is different inside the pore than in bulk solution. This difference causes a concentration dependence of the distribution coefficient, as reported in experiments involving exclusion chromatography. In order to explain this effect, we develop a model for a concentration‐dependent distribution which explicitly accounts for a coupling between pore–macromolecule and macromolecule–macromolecule interactions. Predictions using this model are reported for the case of rigid spherical macromolecules in both cylindrical and slit pores, including both steric (hard sphere–hard wall) and long‐range (screened electrostatic) interactions. An important result is the existence of a general correlation between the first order concentration effect and measurable properties of the macromolecule and porous medium.