REVISED PARAMETRIZATION OF THE DILLMANN-MEIER THEORY OF HOMOGENEOUS NUCLEATION

The Dillmann-Meier theory of homogeneous nucleation in its original fo rm contains an inconsistency which can be removed by taking into accou nt imperfect vapor effects. The predicted nucleation rates of the corr ected model are much larger than those of the original model. Agreemen t between theory and experiment can be restored, however, by a revised parametrization of the model, involving only one free parameter tau. Models suggest a range of possible values for this parameter, with tau = 0 yielding good agreement between predictions and data for n-nonane , water, and the lower alcohols. This value is characteristic of a cla ss of nucleation models which includes the classical theory and a self -consistent derivative, modified to incorporate a size-dependent surfa ce tension.