The yield and size distribution of surfactant-free solid lipid nanoparticles (SF-SLNs) formed by hot homogenization were investigated by changing the amount of lipid (palmitic acid). The yield was 100% and monodispersed same-sized particles of 120-200 nm were formed at the lipid amount <= 2.8 x 10(-4) g-lipid (g-water)(-1). The yield decreased owing to phase separation, and the size increased "step-likely" to be 200 350 nm while keeping the monodispersity when the lipid amount was just above <= 2.8 x 10(-4) g-lipid (g-water)(-1). The size and the lipid amount continued to increase gradually at the lipid amount >2.8 x 10(-4) g-lipid (g-water)(-1). The results indicate that submicron-sized solid lipid particles can be formed without surfactants and that the decrease of yield and the step-like increase of particle size occur at the same lipid amount. The total surface area of the SF-SLNs was estimated using the experimental data. It is suggested that the total surface area and the lipid amount are correlated to each other.