A novel approach using a 2-D population balance model is developed and
applied to the analysis of experimental tracer crystal data. This app
roach is effective in discriminating among various functional forms of
agglomeration kernel and enables estimation of the agglomeration kine
tics. At present, the analysis is restricted to three simple agglomera
tion kernels and shows that the size-independent kernel best describes
the agglomeration of Al(OH)(3) crystals during precipitation in caust
ic aluminate solutions. This agrees with the findings of Ilievski and
White (1994). Estimates of the agglomeration kinetic parameters from t
he tracer data agree well with the experimentally observed values.