Crystallization of KNO3 under conditions of diffusive and convective regime

Influence of the nature of heat transfer on crystallization from a cooling solution has been investigated. Sodium polymethylacrylate (PMANa) was used to adjust the viscosity of the medium in the desired way. It was shown that the nature of heat transfer influences the crystallization kinetics and that the absence of convection results in enhanced supercooling. These findings corroborate our interpretation of space experiments /1/. The KNO3-H2O-PMANa system is suitable for a detailed analysis of the influence of zero gravity on the nucleation and crystallization processes.