Published online by Cambridge University Press: 19 October 2009
A consistent picture of the state of a bacteria-carrying particle in a bactericidal atmosphere is given. The particle is referred to an ideal ternary system where two of the components are volatile and in equilibrium with their respective vapours. The ideal phase diagrams for systems with one independent variable are given, and the large deviations from the ideal of an actual system are shown from calculations using published data on salivary particle masses in the presence of bactericide vapour at various relative humidities.