The compressible nozzle flow of a mixture of a condensible vapor and an inert carrier gas with nonequilibrium condensation is considered. An asymptotic method is used with respect to two disparate parameters appearing in the nonequilibrium condensation rate equation. A high activation limit and another limit consideration that signify a large nucleation time followed by a small droplet growth time are employed. Under the limits, the coupled integral rate equation is so controlled by the activation function of homogeneous nucleation over its six zones that there appears to be a one-to-one correspondence between these zones and the six characteristic condensation zones of the nozzle flow itself. The six zones are the initial growth of condensate, further growth, rapid growth, onset, nucleation with growth, and droplet growth zone. The last zone can be greatly simplified if terms that imply a reasonably sizable order of error are neglected. This results in the rectilinear, one-dimensional flow equations of a normal shock wave structured or resisted by droplet growth.

The classical theory of homogeneous bubble nucleation is reconsidered by employing a phenomenological nucleation barrier in the capillarity approximation that utilizes the superheat threshold achieved in experiments. Consequently, an algorithm is constructed for the evaluation of the superheat temperatures in homogeneous boiling (tensile strengths in cavitation), the critical radii and steady-state nucleation rates. The nucleation theorem is written in this framework and is applied to the classical theory of homogeneous bubble nucleation for the phenomenological nucleation barrier employed. The superheat temperatures calculated show excellent agreement over a wide range of liquid pressures for most of the substances investigated. The steady-state nucleation rates are also altered by many orders of magnitude, in agreement with the results of previous investigators using different approaches.