Evaluation of methods for determining the refraction correction for light‐scattering photometers

Recent literature reports from three laboratories have treated the refraction correction for the Sofica and a noncommercial light scattering photometer. Our re‐evaluation of the data contained in these reports, as well as our experiments, indicate that the usually cited n 2 refraction correction has not been unquestionably established for these instruments. In some cases, imprecise experimental techniques have been used to support this particular form of the correction. In addition, we find the optical system of the Sofica instrument results in the detector seeing vertically past the horizontal edge of the illuminated volume in violation of a basic assumption in the deduction of the n 2 correction. Our experiments, as well as our interpretation of recent literature data, support an exponent of less than 2.0 for the Sofica apparatus, which is consistent with an instrument whose detector views outside the illuminated volume. However, the experimental methods available to evaluate the exponent lack the desired precision.