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Updated: Dec 9, 2025
Dynamic Pore-scale Reservoir-condition Imaging of Reaction in Carbonates Using Synchrotron Fast Tomography
Published on: February 21, 2017
In situ characterization of gas-filled microballoons using soft X-ray microspectroscopy
George Tzvetkov1, Birgit Graf2, Paulo Fernandes3
1Physikalische Chemie II, Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Egerlandstrasse 3, D-91058 Erlangen, Germany. george.tzvetkov@chemie.uni-erlangen.de and Swiss Light Source, Paul Scherrer Institut, 5232 Villigen - PSI, Switzerland.
Abstract:
In this study we describe the first direct, real-space characterization of a novel type of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) based microballoons in aqueous environment using scanning transmission X-ray microscopy (STXM). From the oxygen K-edge near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectra taken from the microballoon interiors we could unambiguously distinguish between water- and air-filled particles. We also demonstrate that STXM imaging below and above the O K-edge (520 eV and 550 eV) can provide unique information on the composition of microballoons in water. It was found that the particular microballoon system investigated here has a remarkable high stability and is able to contain gases for more than 6 months, making it well suited for biomedical applications.
