Adsorption isoterms and capillary condensation in a nanoslit with rough walls: a density functional theory

Adsorption isoterms and capillary condensation in an open slit with walls decorated with arrays of pillars are examined using the density functional theory. Compared with the main substrate, the pillars can have the same or different parameters in the Lennard-Jones interaction potential between them and the fluid in the slit. The roughness of the solid surface, defined as the ratio between the area of the actual surface and the area of the surface free of pillars, is controlled by the height of the pillars. It is shown that the capillary condensation pressure first increases with increasing roughness, passes through a maximum, and then decreases. The amount of adsorbed fluid at constant volume of the slit has, in general, a nonmonotonic dependence on roughness. These features of adsorption and capillary condensation are results of increased surface area and changes in the fluid-solid potential energy due to changes in roughness.