Flocculation of hematite particles by a comparatively large rigid polysaccharide: schizophyllan

We studied the flocculation kinetics and structure of hematite aggregates induced by a large rigid extracellular polysaccharide, schizophyllan. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), photon correlation spectroscopy (PCS), and static light scattering (SLS) were used to characterize hematite particles, schizophyllan chains, and their flocs, to follow the time evolution of floc sizes, and to determine floc fractal dimensions. A maximum flocculation rate was found at a certain schizophyllan/hematite ratio. The maximum rate was considerably smaller than the rate of diffusion-limited aggregation (DLA) of hematite particles induced by simple electrolytes. To interpret the experimental results and to reveal various factors affecting the optimal dosage, Monte Carlo simulations were performed on the flocculation of small colloidal particles by relatively long, monodisperse linear polymers. The existence of the maximum flocculation rate was confirmed by computer simulation. However, a higher optimal dosage of schizophyllan was obtained in the experiments. The difference in the optimal dosage can be attributed mostly to the higher adsorption affinity of the hematite on schizophyllan aggregates present in the initial solution and the presence of a large fraction of free polymer chains which do not participate in the flocculation process. Both experiments and computer simulations demonstrated the fractal nature of the schizophyllan-hematite flocs. The fractal dimensions of the flocs at the optimal dosage were determined. A higher fractal dimension was obtained from experiments than from computer simulations, suggesting a reconstruction of the floc structure. Finally, a two-stage flocculation mechanism for hematite particles in the presence of a relatively long schizophyllan polymer was proposed. In the first flocculation stage, the hematite particles are preferentially adsorbed onto the schizophyllan aggregates in solution. The second stage consists of the association of these reactive entities with each other and also with naked chains to form fractal flocs by a bridging mechanism, where the hematite particles play the role of ligands.