Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 28, 2026

A Microfluidic Approach for the Study of Ice and Clathrate Hydrate Crystallization
Published on: August 18, 2022
Hydrodynamic theory of freezing: Nucleation and polycrystalline growth
Frigyes Podmaniczky1, Gyula I Tóth1,2, György Tegze1
1Research Institute for Solid State Physics and Optics, P.O. Box 49, H-1525 Budapest, Hungary.
Abstract:
Structural aspects of crystal nucleation in undercooled liquids are explored using a nonlinear hydrodynamic theory of crystallization proposed recently [G. I. Tóth et al., J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 26, 055001 (2014)JCOMEL0953-898410.1088/0953-8984/26/5/055001], which is based on combining fluctuating hydrodynamics with the phase-field crystal theory. We show that in this hydrodynamic approach not only homogeneous and heterogeneous nucleation processes are accessible, but also growth front nucleation, which leads to the formation of new (differently oriented) grains at the solid-liquid front in highly undercooled systems. Formation of dislocations at the solid-liquid interface and interference of density waves ahead of the crystallization front are responsible for the appearance of the new orientations at the growth front that lead to spherulite-like nanostructures.
Related Concept Videos
Crystal Growth: Principles of Crystallization
Initiating crystallization involves manipulating the concentration of the solute and the temperature of the solution. Since crystal growth occurs when the ratio of concentration and solubility of the solute in the solvent...
Recrystallization: Solid–Solution Equilibria
Phase Transitions: Melting and Freezing
States of Water
Water freezes when the intermolecular forces are greater than the kinetic energy. Unlike most other substances, water is less dense in its solid state than in its liquid state. This is because each water molecule can form...
Precipitation Processes
Freezing Point Depression and Boiling Point Elevation
The boiling point of a liquid is the temperature at which its vapor pressure is equal to ambient atmospheric pressure. Since the vapor pressure of a solution is lowered due to the presence of nonvolatile solutes, it stands to reason that the solution’s boiling point will subsequently be increased. Vapor pressure increases with temperature, and so a solution will require a higher temperature than will pure solvent to achieve any given vapor pressure, including one...

