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Spatial Separation of Molecular Conformers and Clusters
Published on: January 9, 2014
Stability of binary mixtures in electric field gradients
1Department of Chemical Engineering and The Ilse Katz Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel.
The Journal of Chemical Physics
|November 26, 2009
Summary
Electric fields can induce phase separation in nonpolar binary mixtures. The study quanties the critical field for this transition and its effect on the phase diagram.
Area of Science:
- Physical Chemistry
- Materials Science
Background:
- Nonpolar binary mixtures exhibit complex phase behavior.
- Electric fields are known to influence material properties.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effect of electric field gradients on the phase behavior of nonpolar binary mixtures.
- To determine the critical electric field for phase separation and analyze its dependence on system parameters.
Main Methods:
- Theoretical modeling of electric field effects on mixture thermodynamics.
- Analysis of composition profiles and phase-separation interfaces under electric fields.
Main Results:
- Small electric fields induce smooth composition changes.
- Sufficiently large electric fields trigger a phase-separation transition.
- The critical field and equilibrium interface position are quantified.
Conclusions:
- Electric fields significantly alter the phase diagram of nonpolar binary mixtures.
- Both linear and nonlinear dielectric responses are considered.
- An unusual phenomenon of interface formation away from boundaries is observed.
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