User's Guide to Galoper: A Program for Simulating the Shapes of Crystal Size Distributions from Growth Mechanisms - and Associated Programs

GALOPER is a computer program that simulates the shapes of crystal size distributions (CSDs) from crystal growth mechanisms. This manual describes how to use the program. The theory for the program's operation has been described previously (Eberl, Drits, and Srodon, 1998). CSDs that can be simulated using GALOPER include those that result from growth mechanisms operating in the open system, such as constant-rate nucleation and growth, nucleation with a decaying nucleation rate and growth, surface-controlled growth, supply-controlled growth, and constant-rate and random growth; and those that result from mechanisms operating in the closed system such as Ostwald ripening, random ripening, and crystal coalescence. In addition, CSDs for two types weathering reactions can be simulated. The operation of associated programs also is described, including two statistical programs used for comparing calculated with measured CSDs, a program used for calculating lognormal CSDs, and a program for arranging measured crystal sizes into size groupings (bins).