Display options
Cite
Cholakova D, Valkova Z, Tcholakova S, et al. "Self-Shaping" of Multicomponent Drops. Langmuir. 2017;33(23):5696-5706doi: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b01153.
Cholakova, D., Valkova, Z., Tcholakova, S., Denkov, N., & Smoukov, S. K. (2017). "Self-Shaping" of Multicomponent Drops. Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids, 33(23), 5696-5706. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b01153
Cholakova, Diana, et al. ""Self-Shaping" of Multicomponent Drops." Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids vol. 33,23 (2017): 5696-5706. doi: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b01153
Cholakova D, Valkova Z, Tcholakova S, Denkov N, Smoukov SK. "Self-Shaping" of Multicomponent Drops. Langmuir. 2017 Jun 13;33(23):5696-5706. doi: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b01153. Epub 2017 May 30. PMID: 28509554.
Copy Download .nbib Format: NLM
Share it on

Langmuir. 2017 Jun 13;33(23):5696-5706. doi: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b01153. Epub 2017 May 30.

"Self-Shaping" of Multicomponent Drops.

Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids

Diana Cholakova, Zhulieta Valkova, Slavka Tcholakova, Nikolai Denkov, Stoyan K Smoukov

Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Engineering Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy, Sofia University , 1 James Bourchier Avenue, 1164 Sofia, Bulgaria.
  2. Active and Intelligent Materials Lab, Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy, University of Cambridge , 27 Charles Babbage Road, Cambridge CB3 OFS, U.K.

PMID: 28509554 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b01153

Abstract

In our recent study we showed that single-component emulsion drops, stabilized by proper surfactants, can spontaneously break symmetry and transform into various polygonal shapes during cooling [ Denkov Nature 2015 , 528 , 392 - 395 ]. This process involves the formation of a plastic rotator phase of self-assembled oil molecules beneath the drop surface. The plastic phase spontaneously forms a frame of plastic rods at the oil drop perimeter which supports the polygonal shapes. However, most of the common substances used in industry appear as mixtures of molecules rather than pure substances. Here we present a systematic study of the ability of multicomponent emulsion drops to deform upon cooling. The observed trends can be summarized as follows: (1) The general drop-shape evolution for multicomponent drops during cooling is the same as with single-component drops; however, some additional shapes are observed. (2) Preservation of the particle shape upon freezing is possible for alkane mixtures with chain length difference Δn ≤ 4; for greater Δn, phase separation within the droplet is observed. (3) Multicomponent particles prepared from alkanes with Δn ≤ 4 plastify upon cooling due to the formation of a bulk rotator phase within the particles. (4) If a compound, which cannot induce self-shaping when pure, is mixed with a certain amount of a compound which induces self-shaping, then drops prepared from this mixture can also self-shape upon cooling. (5) Self-emulsification phenomena are also observed for multicomponent drops. In addition to the three recently reported mechanisms of self-emulsification [ Tcholakova Nat. Commun. 2017 , ( 8 ), 15012 ], a new (fourth) mechanism is observed upon freezing for alkane mixtures with Δn > 4. It involves disintegration of the particles due to a phase separation of alkanes upon freezing.

Publication Types