Nonequilibrium kinetic boundary condition at the vapor-liquid interface of argon

A boundary condition for the Boltzmann equation (kinetic boundary condition, KBC) at the vapor-liquid interface of argon is constructed with the help of molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The KBC is examined at a constant liquid temperature of 85 K in a wide range of nonequilibrium states of vapor. The present investigation is an extension of a previous one by Ishiyama, Yano, and Fujikawa [Phys. Rev. Lett. 95, 084504 (2005)] and provides a more complete form of the KBC. The present KBC includes a thermal accommodation coefficient in addition to evaporation and condensation coefficients, and these coefficients are determined in MD simulations uniquely. The thermal accommodation coefficient shows an anisotropic behavior at the interface for molecular velocities normal versus tangential to the interface. It is also found that the evaporation and condensation coefficients are almost constant in a fairly wide range of nonequilibrium states. The thermal accommodation coefficient of the normal velocity component is almost unity, while that of the tangential component shows a decreasing function of the density of vapor incident on the interface, indicating that the tangential velocity distribution of molecules leaving the interface into the vapor phase may deviate from the tangential parts of the Maxwell velocity distribution at the liquid temperature. A mechanism for the deviation of the KBC from the isotropic Maxwell KBC at the liquid temperature is discussed in terms of anisotropic energy relaxation at the interface. The liquid-temperature dependence of the present KBC is also discussed.