The major goal of the project was to study the effect of critical fluctuations on the thermophysical properties and phase behavior of fluids and fluid mixtures. Long-range fluctuations appear because of the presence of critical phase transitions. A global theory of critical fluctuations was developed and applied to represent thermodynamic properties and transport properties of molecular fluids and fluid mixtures. In the second phase of the project, the theory was extended to deal with critical fluctuations in complex fluids such as polymer solutions and electrolyte solutions. The theoretical predictions have been confirmed by computer simulations and by light-scattering experiments. Fluctuations in fluids in nonequilibrium states have also been investigated.

Lists citations with abstracts for aerospace related reports obtained from world wide sources and announces documents that have recently been entered into the NASA Scientific and Technical Information Database.

This book deals with density, temperature, velocity and concentration fluctuations in fluids and fluid mixtures. The book first reviews thermal fluctuations in equilibrium fluids on the basis of fluctuating hydrodynamics. It then shows how the method of fluctuating hydrodynamics can be extended to deal with hydrodynamic fluctuations when the system is in a stationary nonequilibrium state. In contrast to equilibrium fluids where the fluctuations are generally short ranged unless the system is close to a critical point, fluctuations in nonequilibrium fluids are always long-ranged encompassing the entire system. The book provides the first comprehensive treatment of fluctuations in fluids and fluid mixtures brought out of equilibrium by the imposition of a temperature and concentration gradient but that are still in a macroscopically quiescent state. By incorporating appropriate boundary conditions in the case of fluid layers, it is shown how fluctuating hydrodynamics affects the fluctuations close to the onset of convection. Experimental techniques of light scattering and shadowgraphy for measuring nonequilibrium fluctuations are elucidated and the experimental results thus far reported in the literature are reviewed. · Systematic exposition of fluctuating hydrodynamics and its applications· First book on nonequilibrium fluctuations in fluids· Fluctuating Boussinesq equations and nonequilibrium fluids· Fluid layers and onset of convection· Rayleigh scattering and Brillouin scattering in fluids· Shadowgraph technique for measuring fluctuations· Fluctuations near hydrodynamic instabilities

This book has been prepared under the auspices of Commission I.2 on Thermodynamics of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). The authors of the 18 chapters are all recognized experts in the field. The book gives an up-to-date presentation of equations of state for fluids and fluid mixtures. All principal approaches for developing equations of state are covered. The theoretical basis and practical use of each type of equation is discussed and the strength and weaknesses of each is addressed. Topics addressed include the virial equation of state, cubic equations and generalized van der Waals equations, perturbation theory, integral equations, corresponding stated and mixing rules. Special attention is also devoted to associating fluids, polydisperse fluids, polymer systems, self-assembled systems, ionic fluids and fluids near critical points.

Published under the asspices of both IUPAC and its affiliated body, the International Association of Chemical Thermodynamics (IACT), this book will serve as a guide to scientists or technicians who use equations of state for fluids. Concentrating on the application of theory, the practical use of each type of equation is discussed and the strengths and weaknesses of each are addressed. It includes material on the equations of state for chemically reacting and non-equilibrium fluids which have undergone significant developments and brings up to date the equations of state for fluids and fluid mixtures. Applied Thermodynamics of Fluids addresses the need of practitioners within academia, government and industry by assembling an international team of distinguished experts to provide each chapter. The topics presented in the book are important to the energy business, particularly the hydroncarbon economy and the development of new power sources and are also significant for the application of liquid crystals and ionic liquids to commericial products. This reference will be useful for post graduate researchers in the fields of chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, chemistry and physics.