TY  - EJOU
AU  - Bronnikov, Sergei  
AU  - Kostromin, Sergei  
AU  - Zuev, Vyacheslav  

TI  - Kinetics of the ordered phase growth across the phase separation of a multi-component liquid crystalline mixture
T2  - The International Conference on Computational \& Experimental Engineering and Sciences

PY  - 2009
VL  - 9
IS  - 4
SN  - 1933-2815

AB  - Kinetics of the ordered phase growth in a melted multi-component liquid crystalline mixture subjected to a deep cooling was studied using polarizing optical microscopy. The droplets of the ordered phase revealed in the optical images across the phase transition were segmented and treated statistically. In the resulting histograms, two overlapping statistical ensembles related to two main components of the mixture were recognized. These ensembles were successfully described using principles of irreversible thermodynamics and the mean droplet diameters within both ensembles were determined. Analysis of the mean droplet diameter as a function of time allowed recognition of two regimes involved in the ordered phase evolution: i) nucleation and rapid nucleus growth and ii) nucleus coarsening, i.e. Ostwald ripening. Both regimes were quantitatively described with the universal law for the cluster growth. The mechanisms responsible for the ordered phase growth were also recognized.
KW  - liquid crystalline mixture
KW  -  phase separation
KW  -  statistical size distribution
KW  -  irreversible thermodynamics
KW  -  mean droplet diameter
KW  -  kinetics
KW  -  ordered phase

DO  - 10.3970/icces.2009.009.207