You are running an experimental fixed-bed adsorption column that enables you to sample the liquid along the length of the bed. These samples then may be analyzed for solute concentration. Based on your analysis, you determine that 60% of the bed comes to equilibrium with the feed solute concentration at breakthrough. Required:
a. What is the corresponding bed efficiency (fraction of bed utilized)?
b. If the bed performance described above was achieved under conditions where the adsorption isotherm is roughly linear with K = 100, can q be improved to 0.95 by changing K if all else is held constant? Explain.
c. How does the slope of the breakthrough curve change with K? Discuss this issue

with regard to fixed bed adsorption column operation and performance.