Search results for "Electrostatics"
showing 10 items of 67 documents
Acid-Base Properties of 2:1 Clays. I. Modeling the Role of Electrostatics
2010
We present a theoretical investigation of the titratable charge of clays with various structural charge (sigma(b)): pyrophyllite (sigma(b) = 0 e x nm(-2)), montmorillonite (sigma(b) = -0.7 e x nm(-2)) and illite (sigma(b) = -1.2 e x nm(-2)). The calculations were carried out using a Monte Carlo method in the Grand Canonical ensemble and in the framework of the primitive model. The clay particle was modeled as a perfect hexagonal platelet, with an "ideal" crystal structure. The only fitting parameters used are the intrinsic equilibrium constants (pK(0)) for the protonation/deprotonation reactions of the broken-bond sites on the lateral faces of the clay particles, silanol, =SiO(-) + H(+) --=…
The growth of charged platelets.
2014
Growth models of charged nanoplatelets are investigated with Monte Carlo simulations and simple theory. In a first model, 2-dimensional simulations in the canonical ensemble are used to demonstrate that the growth of a single weakly charged platelet could be limited by its own internal repulsion. The short range attractive interaction in the crystal is modeled with a square well potential while the electrostatic interactions are described with a screened Coulomb potential. The qualitative behavior of this case can also be described by simply balancing the attractive crystal energy with the screened Coulomb repulsion between the crystal sites. This repulsion is a free energy term dominated b…
Electrostatic interactions in critical solvents
2011
The subtle interplay between critical phenomena and electrostatics is investigated by considering the effective force acting on two parallel walls confining a near-critical binary liquid mixture with added salt. The ion-solvent coupling can turn a non-critical repulsive electrostatic force into an attractive one upon approaching the critical point. However, the effective force is eventually dominated by the critical Casimir effect, the universal properties of which are not altered by the presence of salt. This observation allows a consistent interpretation of recent experimental data.
Charged particles at fluid interfaces as a probe into structural details of a double layer
2011
Electrostatic interactions between charged, distant colloids in a bulk electrolyte solution do not depend on the inherent structure of ions and a solvent forming a double layer. For charged colloids trapped at an interface between an electrolyte and air this no longer holds; as the electrostatic interactions are mediated via air and the field lines determining the interactions originate at the charged surface, these details come into prominence. Using the Langevin-Poisson-Boltzmann equation we investigate how steric effects and the polarization saturation of a solvent effect the contact potential at the colloid surface and, in consequence, the long range interactions between colloids trappe…
GROMEX: A Scalable and Versatile Fast Multipole Method for Biomolecular Simulation
2020
Atomistic simulations of large biomolecular systems with chemical variability such as constant pH dynamic protonation offer multiple challenges in high performance computing. One of them is the correct treatment of the involved electrostatics in an efficient and highly scalable way. Here we review and assess two of the main building blocks that will permit such simulations: (1) An electrostatics library based on the Fast Multipole Method (FMM) that treats local alternative charge distributions with minimal overhead, and (2) A $λ$-dynamics module working in tandem with the FMM that enables various types of chemical transitions during the simulation. Our $λ$-dynamics and FMM implementations d…
Mesoscopic Simulations of Polyelectrolyte Electrophoresis in Nanochannels
2011
We present the results of mesoscopic dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) simulations of coupled electrohydrodynamic phenomena on the micro- and nanoscale. The effects of electroosmotic flow and slippage combined with polyelectrolyte electrophoresis are investigated in detail, taking full account of hydrodynamic and electrostatic interactions. Our numerical results are in excellent agreement with analytical calculations.
How to apply the Kirkwood–Buff theory to individual species in salt solutions
2013
It is generally assumed that the Kirkwood–Buff (KB) theory cannot be applied to anions and cations individually in a solution, as one cannot simulate this system in an open ensemble due to the electroneutrality constraint. By applying our recently derived KB theory for closed systems, we show that one does have access to single-ion properties in Molecular Dynamics. Our findings are supported by simulations for a model of a salt solution in which particles interact with WCA potentials, as well as for the NaCl/water system using the Particle Mesh Ewald technique for electrostatics.
C-S-H/solution interface: Experimental and Monte Carlo studies
2010
International audience; The surface charge density of C-S-H particles appears to be one of the key parameters for predicting the cohesion strength, understanding the ion retention, the pollutant leakage, and admixture adsorption in hydrated cement pastes. This paper presents a Monte Carlo simulation of the surface-ions interactions that permits the prediction of surface charge density (σ), electrokinetic potential (ζ) and ions adsorption of mineral surfaces in equilibrium with a given electrolyte solution. Simulated results are compared to experimental data obtained by titration, electrokinetic potential measurements and ions uptake in the case of C-S-H suspensions. An excellent agreement i…
Hydrogen-Bond Cooperative Effects in Small Cyclic Water Clusters as Revealed by the Interacting Quantum Atoms Approach
2013
The cooperative effects of hydrogen bonding in small water clus- ters (H2O)n (n = 3-6) have been studied by using the partition of the electronic energy in accordance with the interact- ing quantum atoms (IQA) approach. The IQA energy splitting is comple- mented by a topological analysis of the electron density (1(r)) compliant with the quantum theory of atoms-in-mole- cules (QTAIM) and the calculation of electrostatic interactions by using one- and two-electron integrals, thereby avoiding convergence issues inherent to a multipolar expansion. The results show that the cooperative effects of hy- drogen bonding in small water clusters arise from a compromise between: 1) the deformation energ…
Ettringite surface chemistry: Interplay of electrostatic and ion specificity
2011
International audience; This paper presents a detailed experimental study combined with Monte Carlo (MC) simulations within the primitive model of the physical chemistry at the ettringite-water interface over a wide range of pH and bulk conditions for which ettringite exists thanks to its solubility in aqueous solutions. Ettringite, which is an important phase in hydrated cement-based systems, bears a permanent and positive structural charge. In contrast with previous studies, electrokinetic measurements together with the careful chemical analysis of the equilibrium solutions of the dispersions have brought strong support to designate sulfate as being the ion determining the potential. Simu…