Search results for " tension"
showing 10 items of 270 documents
Continuum-uniform approach calculations of the solubility of hydrocarbons in water
1993
Abstract The ransfer free energies from gas phase to water for some hydrocarbons are calculated by means of a continuum-uniform model of the solvent. For the calculation of the cavitation energy a model based on the surface tension is proposed. The calculated values are compared with the experimental free energies obtained with and without a corrective factor that accounts for the difference in the solute—solvent sizes. Good agreement between the theoretical free energies and the corrected experimental data is obtained. Our calculations seem to show that the hydrophobic effect is directly related to the molecular surface area.
Bulk and interfacial properties in colloid-polymer mixtures
2005
Large-scale Monte Carlo simulations of a phase-separating colloid-polymer mixture are performed and compared to recent experiments. The approach is based on effective interaction potentials in which the central monomers of self-avoiding polymer chains are used as effective coordinates. By incorporating polymer nonideality together with soft colloid-polymer repulsion, the predicted binodal is in excellent agreement with recent experiments. In addition, the interfacial tension as well as the capillary length are in quantitative agreement with experimental results obtained at a number of points in the phase-coexistence region, without the use of any fit parameters.
Simulation and theory of fluid demixing and interfacial tension of mixtures of colloids and nonideal polymers.
2005
An extension of the Asakura-Oosawa-Vrij model of hard sphere colloids and non-adsorbing polymers, that takes polymer non-ideality into account through a repulsive stepfunction pair potential between polymers, is studied with grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations and density functional theory. Simulation results validate previous theoretical findings for the shift of the bulk fluid demixing binodal upon increasing strength of polymer-polymer repulsion, promoting the tendency to mix. For increasing strength of the polymer-polymer repulsion, simulation and theory consistently predict the interfacial tension of the free colloidal liquid-gas interface to decrease significantly for fixed colloi…
Momentum-dependent interfacial tension in polymer solutions
2002
A model for the interface between a concentrated and a very dilute polymer solution is studied by Monte Carlo simulations at temperatures below the Theta temperature (in bad solvent conditions). The wave-number–dependent interfacial tension γ(q) is extracted from an analysis of the capillary wave amplitudes. It is shown that γ(q) decreases monotonically with q2, while no evidence is found for the predicted increase γ(q) ∝ κq2 with a positive bending rigidity κ of the interface at large q. Consequences for the interpretations of simulations and experiments on interfacial widths are briefly discussed.
Effects of KL4-Type Peptides on the Surface Activity and Stability of Pulmonary Surfactant Films as Evaluated in the Captive Bubble Surfactometer
2012
Although SP-B is the most critical protein in lung surfactant, recombinant or synthetic forms of SP-B as a basis for the development of therapeutic surfactants are still not available. An alternative is the design and production of peptides mimicking the structure and general properties of essential motifs in SP-B.In the present study the surface activity of different KL4-derived peptides, as sequence variations of the original peptide designed to replicate a general amphipathic motif of SP-B [1], has been assessed in the captive bubble surfactometer. The peptides were reconstituted in a surfactant lipid matrix: DPPC/POPC/POPG (50:25:15, w/w/w). This mixture was selected because it offers a…
Interfacial tension between polymer-containing liquids - Predictability and influences of additives
1999
The first part of the contribution deals with the interfacial tension, σ, of phase-separated polymer solutions in single or mixed solvents and of binary polymer blends as a function of the relative distance to the critical temperature of the system, special attention being paid to the possibilities of theoretical prediction. Two methods are discussed in more detail. One is based on a realistic description of the Gibbs energy of mixing as a function of composition, the second correlates σ with the length of the measured tie line. The second part is devoted to another aspect, namely the effects of additives on the interfacial tension between the coexisting phases of demixed polymer solutions …
Ultra-coarse-graining of homopolymers in inhomogeneous systems
2021
Abstract We develop coarse-grained (CG) models for simulating homopolymers in inhomogeneous systems, focusing on polymer films and droplets. If the CG polymers interact solely through two-body potentials, then the films and droplets either dissolve or collapse into small aggregates, depending on whether the effective polymer–polymer interactions have been determined from reference simulations in the bulk or at infinite dilution. To address this shortcoming, we include higher order interactions either through an additional three-body potential or a local density-dependent potential (LDP). We parameterize the two- and three-body potentials via force matching, and the LDP through relative entr…
Interfacial Assembly and Jamming Behavior of Polymeric Janus Particles at Liquid Interfaces
2017
The self-assembly and interfacial jamming of spherical Janus nanoparticles (JNPs) at the water/oil interface were investigated. Polymeric JNPs, made by cross-linking polystyrene-block-polybutadiene-block-poly(methyl methacrylate) (PS-PB-PMMA), with a high interfacial activity assemble at the water/oil interface. During the self-assembly at the interface, the interfacial energy was reduced and a dynamic interlayer was observed that is responsive to the pH of the aqueous phase. Unlike hard particles, the JNPs are composed of polymer chains that can spread at the liquid-liquid interface to maximize coverage at relatively low areal densities. In a pendant drop geometry, the interfacial area of …
Interfacial Tensions from Drop Retraction versus Pendant Drop Data and Polydispersity Effects
2004
Interfacial tensions sigma were measured by means of both methods for the following polymer pair: polyisobutylene (PIB 3) plus poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS 152) and poly(dimethyl-co-methylphenylsiloxane) (CoP26*) plus PDMS 48. The numbers after the abbreviation state the molar masses in kilograms; the homopolymers exhibit polydispersities on the order of 2. The reliability of the method of drop retraction is backed up by systematic measurements, which demonstrate that it is possible to study the time evolution of sigma. Because of the free choice of the phases (drop or matrix) and the possibility to vary the overall composition of the system in a wide range, drop retraction yields more info…
Effect of random copolymer additives on the interfacial tension between incompatible polymers
1998
Interfacial tensions γ were measured for mixtures of poly(methylphenylsiloxane) (4 kg/mol) and poly(dimethylsiloxane) (24 kg/mol) in the absence and in the presence of small amounts of the random copolymer poly(dimethylsiloxane-ran-methylphenylsiloxane) (89 mol-% of dimethylsiloxane units, 28 kg/mol) from 25 to 110°C. Approximately 1 wt.-% of the copolymer additive suffices to reduce γ from ca. 2.2 to 1.6 mN/m. The time dependence of the apparent γ value in the course of the attainment of equilibria also indicates surface acivity. The hypothesis is formulated that the efficiency of the random copolymer for a reduction of γ is bound to the condition that it is only sparingly soluble in both …