DIRECTIONAL SOLIDIFICATION OF THE LIF - LIBAF3 EUTECTIC

The lamellar eutectic LiF - LiBaF3 has been directionally solidified in different furnaces and special designed cartridges with growth rates between 3 and 60 mm/h and temperature gradients from 1.5 to 7-degrees-C/mm. The growth rates have been calculated from temperature measurements in the melt. The critical ratio G/v for interface stability avoiding eutectic cells has been determined. These experiments have been made in preparing experiments under mu-g(microgravity)-conditions during the second German Spacelab Mission D2 in spring 1993.