The laminar flow tube reactor as a quantitative tool for nucleation studies: Experimental results and theoretical analysis of homogeneous nucleation of dibutylphthalate
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington (United States)
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, (United Kingdom)
A laminar flow tube reactor was designed and constructed to provide an accurate, quantitative measurement of a nucleation rate as a function of supersaturation and temperature. Measurements of nucleation of a supersaturated vapor of dibutylphthalate have been made for the temperature range from -30.3 to +19.1 degree sign C. A thorough analysis of the possible sources of experimental uncertainties (such as defining the correct value of the initial vapor concentration, temperature boundary conditions on the reactor walls, accuracy of the calculations of the thermodynamic parameters of the nucleation zone, and particle concentration measurement) is given. Both isothermal and the isobaric nucleation rates were measured. The experimental data obtained were compared with the measurements of other experimental groups and with theoretical predictions made on the basis of the self-consistency correction nucleation theory. Theoretical analysis, based on the first and the second nucleation theorems, is also presented. The critical cluster size and the excess of internal energy of the critical cluster are obtained. (c) 2000 American Institute of Physics.
- OSTI ID:
- 20217444
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Chemical Physics, Vol. 113, Issue 9; Other Information: PBD: 1 Sep 2000; ISSN 0021-9606
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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