Pattern formation and growth kinetics in eutectic systems

Growth patterns during liquid/solid phase transformation are governed by simultaneous effects of heat and mass transfer mechanisms, creation of new interfaces, jump of the crystallization units from liquid to solid and their rearrangement in the solid matrix. To examine how the above processes influence the scale of microstructure, two eutectic systems are chosen for the study: a polymeric system polyethylene glycol-p-dibromobenzene (PEG-DBBZ) and a simple molecular system succinonitrile (SCN)-camphor.; The scaling law for SCN-camphor system is found to follow the classical Jackson-Hunt model of circular rod eutectic, where the diffusion in the liquid and the interface energy are the main physics governing the two-phase pattern. In contrast, a significantly different scaling law is observed for the polymer system. The interface kinetics of PEG phase and its solute concentration dependence thus have been critically investigated for the first time by directional solidification technique. A model is then proposed that shows that the two-phase pattern in polymers is governed by the interface diffusion and the interface kinetics.; In SCN-camphor system, a new branch of eutectic, elliptical shape rod, is found in thin samples where only one layer of camphor rods is present. It is found that the orientation of the ellipse can change from the major axis in the direction of the thickness to the direction of the width as the velocity and/or the sample thickness is decreased. A theoretical model is developed that predicts the spacing and orientation of the elliptical rods in a thin sample.; The single phase growth patterns of SCN-camphor system were also examined with emphasis on the three-dimensional single cell and cell/dendrite transition. For the 3D single cell in a capillary tube, the entire cell shape ahead of the eutectic front can be described by the Saffmann-Taylor finger only at extremely low growth rate. A 3D directional solidification model is developed to characterize the cell shape and tip undercooling and the experimental results are compared with the predictions of the model. From the investigation of cell/dendrite transition, a model is proposed, from which the condition for the onset of the transition can be obtained.