Turbulent Suppression of Spinodal Decomposition

Authors

D. J. Pine, University of Pittsburgh
Nalini Easwar, University of PittsburghFollow
James V. Maher, University of Pittsburgh
W. I. Goldburg, University of Pittsburgh

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1-1-1984

Publication Title

Physical Review A

Abstract

Light scattering experiments reveal a strong suppression of phase separation near the critical point of a vigorously stirred binary liquid mixture. For stirring Reynolds numbers R ranging from 6.0 × 10³ to 4.5 × 10³, the apparent critical temperature is depressed by ∼1 mK to ∼50 mK. This temperature depression ΔT_c can be fitted to a power law ΔT_c∼Rλ where λ∼2. The magnitude of ΔT_c is consistent with simple models which attribute the effect to the suppression of composition fluctuations by shear; however, these models predict λ≃0.80 in contrast to the observed value of ∼2. Below the apparent critical temperature the turbidity τ changes significantly throughout a temperature range of tens of millikelvin following a power law τ∝(T_c−T)ζ where ζ increases from ∼1 to ∼6 as R is increased.

Volume

29

First Page

308

DOI

doi-org.libproxy.smith.edu/10.1103/PhysRevA.29.308

Rights

©1984 American Physical Society

Comments

Archived as published.

Recommended Citation

Pine, D. J.; Easwar, Nalini; Maher, James V.; and Goldburg, W. I., "Turbulent Suppression of Spinodal Decomposition" (1984). Physics: Faculty Publications, Smith College, Northampton, MA.
https://scholarworks.smith.edu/phy_facpubs/39