Solidification with a quasiequilibrium two-phase zone

A set of nonlinear equations describing solidification with a two-phase zone (mushy region) is analytically solved in a general form in the case of quasi-steady-state crystallization of binary melts. Concentration, temperature distributions and the bulk fraction of the solid phase as functions of a spatial coordinate and physical and operating parameters of solidification are found within the mushy zone. The mushy region thickness and algebraic equation for the bulk fraction of the solid at the boundary solid phase-mushy zone are determined for the first time in a general form. A theory under consideration strengthens a hypothesis about a self-similar structure of the two-phase zone. (C) 2001 Acra Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.