The Application of Calculations of Complex Solubility to the Interpretation of Crystal Growth Phenomena in Silver Halide Emulsions

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Abstract
The method of calculating the complex solubility of a silver halide from a summation of the activities of the diffe,rent complex species in solution has been re-examined and a co~puter program for the calculation of solubility has been wntten. The program allows calculatIOns of solublhty and proportions of each complex in the presence of a complexing ligand and of gelatin in either a silver or halide excess to be made. Various applications of calculated complex solubility in the interpretation of crystal growth data have been examined and a better understanding of the growth rates of monodisperse emulsions, Ostwald ripening, nucleation, and the effect of pH and the role of gelatin have been achieved. Attempts have been made to apply this method to mixed halide emulsions, and solubilities based on both a mixture of solids and an equilibrium solid solution have been calculated. Neither model gives a totally satisfactory prediction of the variation of solubility with halide composition, although an examination of the available experimental evidence suggests that a silver halide emulsion crystal is not an ideal solid solution. Different ideas concerning the relation of crystal habit to solution conditions have been briefly reviewed and it was concluded that certain ripening time data could be better explained by the adsorption rather than the solvation/diffusion layer theory of crystal habit. However, no clear-cut correlations between the calculated amounts of different species or combinations of species in solution and known habit boundaries have been found.

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