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The Discovery of Type-IV Binary Fluid Phase Behavior

Published

Author(s)

Johanna Levelt Sengers

Abstract

The analysis by Scott and Van Konynenburg of the binary Van der Waals mixture for constant excluded volume uncovered the Type-IV phase diagram as a transition between Type-II and Type-III phase diagrams. The common boundary of the regions of Type-II and Type-III is a locus of tricritical points. The tricritical locus meets the common boundary of regions of Type-II and Type-IV at what Meijer coined the Van Laar point in 1989. As early as 1905, the Dutch chemist Van Laar had studied the geometric-mean Van der Waals binary mixtures, produced Type-II and Type-III phase diagrams, and found the exact coordinates of what we call the Van Laar point, but he did not notice tricriticality explicitly. He postulated and proved the existence of Type-IV. Aspects of his proof are discussed.
Citation
Fluid Phase Equilibria

Keywords

critical state, history, phase diagrams, Van der Waals binary mixture, Van Laar, vapor-liquid equilibria

Citation

Levelt Sengers, J. (2008), The Discovery of Type-IV Binary Fluid Phase Behavior, Fluid Phase Equilibria (Accessed October 5, 2024)

Issues

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Created October 16, 2008