Search results for "colloid"
showing 10 items of 1288 documents
Crystal growth kinetics in deionised two-component colloidal suspensions
2007
We report first measurements of the crystal growth velocity in deionised two-component aqueous suspensions of charged polystyrene latex spheres. The size ratio was 1:1.3 and mixing ratios up to 18% of the larger particle were investigated. For the pure components limiting growth velocities of (V ∞,120 = 4.8 µm s−1 and V ∞,156 = 2.9 µm s−1) were observed. In the mixture v drops with increasing mixing ratio even below (V ∞,156) of the large minority component. Careful monitoring of the deionisation procedure excludes the explanation of enhanced ionic contamination. Alternatives based on the kinetics of particle attachment and the position of the phase boundary are discussed.
Drude-type conductivity of charged sphere colloidal crystals: Density and temperature dependence
2005
We report on extensive measurements in the low-frequency limit of the ac conductivity of colloidal fluids and crystals formed from charged colloidal spheres suspended in de-ionized water. Temperature was varied in a range of 5 degrees CTheta35 degrees C and the particle number density n between 0.2 and 25 microm(-3) for the larger, respectively, 2.75 and 210 microm(-3) for the smaller of two investigated species. At fixed Theta the conductivity increased linearly with increasing n without any significant change at the fluid-solid phase boundary. At fixed n it increased with increasing Theta and the increase was more pronounced for larger n. Lacking a rigorous electrohydrodynamic treatment f…
Phase behaviour of binary mixtures of colloidal charged spheres
2008
Abstract As a step towards the modelling of binary metal alloys we here report on the shape of the phase boundary of two deionized charged sphere colloidal suspensions as a function of mixing ratio and particle density. Their size ratios are r = 0.68 and r = 0.56. Both aqueous suspensions of polystyrene copolymer spheres crystallize in a body-centred cubic structure. Interesting differences in the shape of the phase boundary are observed. In the first case a peaked increase of crystal stability was observed for a mixing ratio of p = 0.2–0.3, which gives the fraction of small spheres. Also in the second case the stability of the crystalline phase is larger than expected for an ideal solid so…
Chemically Fueled Volume Phase Transition of Polyacid Microgels
2021
Abstract Microgels are soft colloids that show responsive behavior and are easy to functionalize for applications. They are considered key components for future smart colloidal material systems. However, so far microgel systems have almost exclusively been studied in classical responsive switching settings using external triggers, while internally organized, autonomous control mechanisms as found in supramolecular chemistry and DNA nanotechnology relying on fuel‐driven out‐of‐equilibrium concepts have not been implemented into microgel systems. Here, we introduce chemically fueled transient volume phase transitions (VPTs) for poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA) microgels, where the collapsed hydr…
From capillary condensation to interface localization transitions in colloid-polymer mixtures confined in thin-film geometry.
2008
Monte Carlo simulations of the Asakura-Oosawa (AO) model for colloid-polymer mixtures confined between two parallel repulsive structureless walls are presented and analyzed in the light of current theories on capillary condensation and interface localization transitions. Choosing a polymer to colloid size ratio of q=0.8 and studying ultrathin films in the range of D=3 to D=10 colloid diameters thickness, grand canonical Monte Carlo methods are used; phase transitions are analyzed via finite size scaling, as in previous work on bulk systems and under confinement between identical types of walls. Unlike the latter work, inequivalent walls are used here: while the left wall has a hard-core rep…
No Label Required: Protein Binding at Membrane Interfaces Visualized through Colloid Phase Transitions
2004
Phase transitions in a colloidal dispersion flowing through a cylindrical capillary
2008
The flow of a charged-stabilized colloidal dispersion of crystalline equilibrium structure through a cylindrical capillary is investigated. The simultaneous existence of up to three differently ordered states is observed under conditions of stationary flow. The evolution of their concentric arrangement along the capillary is determined by Bragg microscopy. For sufficient low fluxes, stationary phase distributions are obtained. While the apparent viscosity is non-monotonous and non-Newtonian, the corresponding velocity profiles are found to be piecewise parabolic and are compatible to numerical calculations. Furthermore, we test the assumption of a constant yield stress determining the radia…
Solidification Experiments in Single-Component and Binary Colloidal Melts
2009
Field-induced ordering phenomena and non-local elastic compliance in two-dimensional colloidal crystals
2008
Ordering phenomena in colloidal dispersions exposed to external one-dimensional, periodic fields or under confinement are studied systematically by Monte Carlo computer simulations. Such systems are useful models for the study of monolayers on a substrate. We find that the interaction with a substrate potential completely changes the miscibility of a binary, hard disc mixture at low external field amplitudes. The underlying ordering mechanisms leading to this laser-induced de-mixing differ, depending on which components interact with the substrate potential. Generic effects of confinement on crystalline order in two dimensions are studied in a model system of point particles interacting via…
Gravity-induced liquid crystal phase transitions of colloidal platelets.
2004
he influence of gravity on a suspension of sterically stabilized colloidal gibbsite platelets is studied. An initially isotropic-nematic biphasic sample of such a suspension develops a columnar phase on the bottom on prolonged standing. This phenomenon is described using a simple osmotic compression model. We performed Monte Carlo simulations of cut spheres with aspect ratio L/D = 1/15 and took data from the literature to supply the equations of state required for the model. We find that the model describes the observed three-phase equilibrium quite well.