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Quantitative and Qualitative Examination of Particle-particle Interactions Using Colloidal Probe Nanoscopy

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Published on: July 18, 2014

Electrostatic interactions of colloidal particles at vanishing ionic strength.

Sunil K Sainis¹, Jason W Merrill, Eric R Dufresne

¹Department of Mechanical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, USA.

Langmuir : the ACS Journal of Surfaces and Colloids

|November 11, 2008

Summary

We measured electrostatic forces between colloidal particles in a nonpolar solvent. At low ionic strength, interactions approach bare Coulomb forces, enabling new models for particle charging.

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Area of Science:

Colloid and Surface Science
Physical Chemistry
Soft Matter Physics

Background:

Electrostatic interactions between colloidal particles are usually screened by ions in the solvent.
Understanding these forces is crucial for various applications, including nanoparticle suspensions.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate electrostatic interactions between colloidal polymer microspheres in a nonpolar solvent as ionic strength diminishes.
To explore particle charging mechanisms in the absence of significant ionic screening.

Main Methods:

Measuring forces between pairs of colloidal polymer microspheres in hexadecane.
Controlling ionic strength by varying surfactant (NaAOT) concentration.
Analyzing interactions in the limit of vanishing bulk ion density.

Main Results:

At high surfactant concentrations, interactions follow screened-Coulomb behavior.
At low surfactant concentrations, interactions become indistinguishable from bare Coulomb interactions.
Maximum interaction strength occurs just above the critical micelle concentration, where screening is minimal (kappaa << 1).

Conclusions:

The study provides experimental access to electrostatic forces when particle size is much smaller than the screening length.
A thermodynamic model was developed to explain particle surface charging by reverse micelles, without significant charge renormalization.
Findings are relevant to both nonpolar and aqueous nanoparticle suspensions.