The condensation and evaporation of liquid droplets at arbitrary Knudsen number in the presence of an inert gas (Q1261995)

A new set of equations describing the growth and evaporation of stationary liquid droplets in a mixture of pure vapour and inert gas has been derived. The equations which model the heat and mass transfer between the droplet and the vapour-gas mixture are presented in an algebraic form and are suitable for practical calculations of the droplet growth at any Knudsen number and at any concentration of inert gas. The physical model on which the theory is based is that of Langmuir, but some novel features are incorporated. Unlike most simple theories of droplet growth, the analysis can be used to predict many features of the kinetics of condensation which are usually revealed only by more complex solutions of the Boltzmann equation. The transition from diffusion to kinetic control as the pure vapour limit is approached is also modelled by the theory which shows that the range of Knudsen numbers over which this occurs is of the same order as the mole fraction of inert gas.