KINETICS OF LIQUID LIQUID PHASE-SEPARATION IN A BINARY-LIQUID MIXTUREWITH A MISCIBILITY GAP ALONG THE COEXISTENCE CURVE - STUDY OF THE SYSTEM 2,6-DIMETHYL PYRIDINE/WATER/

The mutual diffusion coefficient D of the system 2,6-dimethyl pyridine obtained from the kinetics of the diffusion limited growth of droplet s of the minority phase suspended in the majority phase decreases appr oaching the lower critical point of the system along the two branches of the binodal curve. The dependence of D on the temperature differenc e (T-p - T-c) is in agreement with that determined from the dynamic of concentration fluctuations in each of the coexisting phases in thermo dynamic equilibrium using dynamic light scattering experiments (T-p, t he temperature of phase separation; T-c, critical temperature). The ag reement between the two sets of data is expected theoretically (linear response).