1998 Volume 12 Issue 3 Pages 225-232
The recent development on studies of the phase transition from a vapor to liquid phase at the vapor-liquid interface is reviewed. An experimental method by a shock tube makes it possible to determine the condensation coefficient through the measurement of the growth rate of a liquid film formed on the shock tube endwall behind a reflected shock wave. Theoretical basis for the method is given on the basis of the analysis of gas dynamics equations with kinetic boundary conditions. The condensation coefficients of methanol, acetic acid, and carbontetrachloride vapor are determined with good accuracies. Computer simulations of dynamic processes of evaporation and condensation at the interface are also introduced.
