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Contact Angle

Contact Angle

When a solid is dipped inside a liquid, the liquid surface becomes curved near the contact. For some solid–liquid interfaces, the liquid is pulled up along the solid, while for others, the liquid surface is convex or depressed near the solid surface. This phenomenon can be explained using the concept of cohesive and adhesive forces.
The adhesive force is the molecular force between molecules of different materials, that is, between the molecules of the solid and the liquid. The cohesive force...

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

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Geometry-controlled instabilities for soft-soft adhesive interfaces.

Elayne M Thomas¹, Hongbo Fu¹, Ryan C Hayward¹

¹Polymer Science and Engineering Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, USA. acrosby@umass.edu.

|October 20, 2022

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

A new model predicts how soft material interfaces separate, revealing that layer thickness and asymmetry control complex crack patterns. This offers insights for controlling adhesion in soft robotics and biology.

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Area of Science:

Materials Science
Mechanics of Soft Materials
Adhesion Science

Background:

Soft material interfaces can form complex shapes during separation due to mechanical instabilities.
Existing models primarily address interfaces between rigid and soft materials, lacking predictive power for two soft materials.

Purpose of the Study:

To develop a predictive model for interface separation morphology when both materials are soft.
To understand the role of geometry and material properties in controlling separation instabilities.
To provide a framework for engineering controlled interface separation.

Main Methods:

Expanded existing models to incorporate the geometry and material properties of two soft materials.
Investigated the nonlinear relationship between system compliance and layer thickness.
Validated the model through experimental measurements using soft elastomers with varied layer thicknesses.

Main Results:

The total system compliance, dependent on soft layer thicknesses, significantly governs interface separation morphology.
Geometric asymmetry (ratio of layer thicknesses) influences stress distribution within each layer.
Geometry alone can dictate the observed differences in interface separation processes.

Conclusions:

The developed model accurately predicts and explains interface separation morphology in soft material systems.
Geometric asymmetry is a key factor in controlling stress and thus separation behavior.
This framework is valuable for understanding and manipulating adhesion in diverse applications, from biology to soft robotics.