Prediction of Metastable Zone Widths: Optimizing the Nucleation Potential Model with Solid–Liquid Interfacial Energy

Abstract

The solid−liquid interfacial energy was optimized based on the nucleation potential model, aligning it more closely with the actual crystallization process. The solubility, induction time, and metastable zone width (MSZW) were determined using the favipiravir-acetonitrile system. The excellence of the nucleation potential model (N-model) and the optimization model (N (T)model and n (T) -model) was evaluated by comparing the modelpredicted MSZWs with the experimental MSZWs. The results indicated that the optimized model accuracy was enhanced by 4−7% compared to the nucleation potential model (N-model). Additionally, three systems were compared, including dicyandiamide in water (narrow MSZW), butyl paraben in ethanol (narrow MSZW), and Lascorbic acid in water (wide MSZW). The optimized model accuracy was enhanced by 23−29, 23−29, and 51−52%, respectively. The results show that the N (T) -model and the n (T) -model have some prediction accuracy improvement for the narrow MSZW system. In addition, for the wide MSZW system, the model has significant accuracy improvement.