Determination of surface tension of succinonitrile using a surface light scattering spectrometer

Liquid/vapor interfacial surface tensions of succinonitrile, NC(CH2)(2)CN, were measured using noninvasive surface light scattering (SLS) spectroscopy . Succinonitrile (SCN) has been and is being used extensively in materials science and fluid physics research, for example. in several theoretical and numerical studies of dendritic growth. It is an established model material with several essential physical properties accurately known with the excep tion of the liquid/vapor surface tension, y(1v), at various temperatures. U sing the SLS spectrometer, we have experimentally determined the liquid/vap or surface tension of SCN in the temperature range from just above its melt ing point (58.1 degreesC) to 118 degreesC using this noninvasive method. Pr evious measurements of SCN surface tension are extremely limited. To the be st of our knowledge, this work is the first to measure the surface tension of succinonitrile noninvasively at melt and elevated temperatures. The SLS spectroscopy is relatively new and unique. This technique has several advan tages over classical methods: it is noninvasive, has a good accuracy, and c an be used to measure the surface tension and viscosity simultaneously, alt hough the viscosity results are not discussed here. The accuracy of values obtained from this technique on some standard liquids is better than 2% for the surface tension and about 10 to 15% for viscosity. Our measurements ga ve y(1v) = 42.28 - 0.0629T +/- 0.2 (mN (.) m(-1)), with T in degreesC, and the viscosity at 60 degreesC is 2.68 +/- 0.3 cp for pure SCN.