Stabilization of High Ionic Strength Slurries Using the Synergistic Effects of a Mixed Surfactant System

The stability of colloidal slurries is an important parameter in many industries due to problems that can arise as a result of particle settling. Particle settling is often caused by the shielding of surface charges on the particles which otherwise would prevent coagulation and subsequent settling. This is particularly a problem in high ionic strength slurries, where large amounts of ions serve to enhance the charge shielding and compression of the electrical double layer around the particles. This phenomenon has been investigated for industrially significant slurries used for tungsten and copper chemical mechanical polishing (CMP). It has been found that the effects of addition of conventional stabilizing agents (e.g., ionic surfactants, polymers) to these high ionic strength slurries are neutralized by the electrolytes in solution. However, the synergistic combination of a properly chosen ionic and nonionic surfactant has been found to be a suitable stabilizing agent for this type of system. For the CMP slurries investigated, the synergistic effect has been shown to be maximum for combinations of sodium dodecyl sulfate anionic surfactant and a variety of polymeric nonionic surfactants. The stabilization observed for these mixed surfactant systems has been explained in terms of adsorption of ionic surfactant on particle surfaces and nonionic surfactant molecules penetrating the film of the ionic surfactant due to hydrocarbon chain interactions. This brings about the steric stabilization of the slurry. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.     

Electrophoretic behaviour and viscosities of metal oxides in mixed surfactant systems

 The electrokinetic behavior and viscosity of anatase and alumina in mixed-surfactant solutions were investigated. Sodium dodecylsulfate and nonionic polyoxyethylene ethers were investigated as model surfactants. Pure nonionic surfactants adsorbed on anatase and coated the particles, so that the zeta potential was nearly zero near the critical micelle concentration of surfactant. At higher surfactant concentrations, an increase in the zeta potentials was observed, suggesting a change in the microstructure of the adsorbed layer. Addition of nonionic surfactant to positively charged anatase and alumina with some preadsorbed sodium dodecylsulfate reversed the surface charge of the oxide to negative, indicating enhanced coadsorption of the anionic surfactant. At higher concentrations of the nonionic surfactant, the charge reversed back to positive. Nonionic surfactants did not reverse the surface charge of these oxides in the absence of the anionic surfactant. Coenhanced adsorption of nonionic and anionic surfactants was used to stabilize alumina at the isoelectric point, where neither surfactant adsorbed appreciably on its own. These results suggest a dramatic change in conformation of the surfactant chains in mixed systems. Further explanation and justification of the proposed changes in adsorbed surfactant conformation require spectroscopic evidence. Received: 12 March 1997 Accepted: 22 July 1997     

Frequency dependence of the dielectric and electro-optic response in suspensions of charged rod-like colloidal particles

We have performed an experimental investigation on the electrokinetic properties of charged rod-like fluorinated latex colloids. Systematic measurements of electrophoretic mobility, dielectric constant and electric birefringence have been performed as a function of the concentration of added nonionic surfactant and salt. In the investigated range of parameters, the zeta potential is a strongly decreasing function of the concentration of nonionic surfactant, while it is basically independent from ionic strength. We have obtained the frequency dependence of dielectric constant and Kerr constant as a function of zeta-potential and ionic strength. We observe the transition from a low frequency behavior, where both the dielectric constant and the Kerr constant are enhanced by the presence of the double layer, to a high frequency behavior, where both quantities take the value expected for unchanged particles in an insulating medium. The shape of the frequency dispersion of the Kerr constant coincides with that of the dielectric constant, but the cut-off frequencies are the same only when the zeta-potential of the particles is low.     

Polyelectrolyte adsorption on charged surfaces: study by electrokinetic measurements

In order to describe the influence of cationic polyelectrolytes on flocculation of disperse systems the adsorption of poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (PDADMAC) onto silica, mica and acidic polymer latex was investigated. The plateau value of the adsorption isotherms grows with increasing surface charge density of the substrates and electrolyte concentration. The adsorbed layer of the polycation was characterized by zeta potential measurements with KCl solutions of constant ionic strength and varied pH. The zero point of the charge as well as the shape of the zeta potential–pH plot depends on the coverage of the surface with polycations. For fully covered substrates the zero point of the charge as well as the pK_A and pK_B values calculated by a stochastic search programme are independent of the substrate. Maximum flocculation was observed at about 30% of the plateau value of the adsorption isotherms.     

A combined streaming-potential optical reflectometer for studying adsorption at the water/solid surface

A novel in-situ streaming-potential optical reflectometry apparatus (SPOR) was constructed and utilized to probe the molecular architecture of aqueous adsorbates on a negatively charged silica surface. By combining optical reflectometry and electrokinetic streaming potentials, we measure simultaneously the adsorption density, gamma, and zeta potential, zeta, in a rectangular flow cell constructed with one transparent wall. Both dynamic and equilibrium measurements are possible, allowing the study of sorption kinetics and reversibility. Using SPOR, we investigate the adsorption of a classic nonionic surfactant (pentaethylene glycol monododecyl ether, C12E5), a simple cationic surfactant (hexadecyl trimethylammonium bromide, CTAB) of opposite charge to that of the substrate surface, and two cationic polyelectrolytes (poly(2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate), PDAEMA; (poly(propyl methacrylate) trimethylammonium chloride, MAPTAC). For the polyethylene oxide nonionic surfactant, bilayer adsorption is established above the critical micelle concentration (cmc) both from the adsorption amounts and from the interpretation of the observed zeta potentials. Near adsorption saturation, CTAB also forms bilayer structures on silica. Here, however, we observe a strong charge reversal of the surface. The SPOR data, along with Gouy-Chapman theory, permit assessment of the net ionization fraction of the CTAB bilayer at 10% so that most of the adsorbed CTAB molecules are counterion complexed. The adsorption of both C12E5 and CTAB is reversible. The adsorption of the cationic polymers, however, is completely irreversible to a solvent wash. As with CTAB, both PDAEMA and MAPTAC demonstrate strong charge reversal. For the polyelectrolyte molecules, however, the adsorbed layer is thin and flat. Here also, a Gouy-Chapman analysis shows that less than 20% of the adsorbed layer is ionized. Furthermore, the amount of charge reversal is inversely proportional to the Debye length in agreement with available theory. SPOR provides a new tool for elucidating aqueous adsorbate molecular structure at solid surfaces.     

Electrokinetic behavior and colloidal stability of polystyrene latex coated with ionic surfactants

This work is focused on analyzing the electrokinetic behavior and colloidal stability of latex dispersions having different amounts of adsorbed ionic surfactants. The effects of the surface charge sign and value, and the type of ionic surfactant were examined. The analysis of the electrophoretic mobility (mu(e)) versus the electrolyte concentration up to really high amounts of salt, much higher than in usual studies, supports the colloidal stability results. In addition, useful information to understand the adsorption isotherms was obtained by studying mu(e) versus the amount of the adsorbed surfactant. Aggregation studies were carried out using a low-angle light scattering technique. The critical coagulation concentrations (ccc) of the particles were obtained for different surfactant coverage. For latex particles covered by ionic surfactants, the electrostatic repulsion was, in general, the main contribution to the colloidal stability of the system; however, steric effects played an important role in some cases. For latices with not very high colloidal stability, the adsorption of ionic surfactants always improved the colloidal stability of the dispersion above certain coverage, independently of the sign of both, latex and surfactant charge. This was in agreement with higher mobility values. Several theoretical models have been applied to the electrophoretic mobility data in order to obtain different interfacial properties of the complexes (i.e., zeta potential and density charge of the surface charged layer).     

Gas–liquid mass transfer in the presence of ionic surfactant: effect of counter‐ions and interfacial turbulence

This work investigated the effect of counter‐ions and interfacial turbulence on oxygen transfer from gas to liquid phase containing ionic surfactant, and experiments were performed in a mechanically stirred reactor with flat gas–liquid interface. Counter‐ions in terms of hydration ability and polarizability influence the interfacial coverage of ionic surfactants (i.e. cetytrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and cetytrimethylammonium chloride) with the same hydrocarbon chain length, producing hindrance but in different extent on oxygen transfer. The addition of electrolyte (NH₄Br) substantially reduced the interfacial tension and surface charge of micelles (zeta potential) in CTAB system, and this salt effect greatly compressed interfacial double layer leading to gas transfer inhibition. The surface charge, aggregation number as well as stability of micelles formed above the critical micelle concentration could also alter interfacial configuration of surfactant layer reflected by gas absorption rate. Liquid turbulence was analyzed to decide the role of surfactant present in water on gas–liquid mass transfer, since Marangoni instability effect playing positive role should be taken into consideration under moderate liquid flow, while in turbulent system, contribution of Marangoni effect became overshadowed and consequently surfactant pose ‘barrier’ effect on gas transfer due to its surface active nature. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Zeta Potential of Nanobubbles Generated by Ultrasonication in Aqueous Alkyl Polyglycoside Solutions

A simple and convenient method to measure microelectrophoretic mobilities was proposed to determine the zeta potential of nanobubbles generated by ultrasonication. Bubbles in pure water solutions and in aqueous solutions of alkyl polyglycoside (AG) with different alkyl chain lengths and degrees of polymerization in the head group were sonicated with a palladium-coated electrode designed specially by the manufacturer. The zeta potentials of bubbles with ordinary cationic and ionic surfactants are consistent with others' previous results. The average size of the bubbles generated by sonication is in the range of 300 to 500 nm. The zeta potentials of bubbles in both pure water and AG solutions at all pH values are negative. As the chain length of AG increases, zeta potentials significantly decrease at high pH. For nonionic AG, a possible charging mechanism based on known mechanisms is suggested to explain the negative charge, known to be unusual. Even with a very high concentration of H(+) ions in solution the bubbles are charged negatively because the interface is covered with slightly acidic alcohol groups of AGs. At high pH, the less polar the surfactant, the more negative the charge, since nonpolar surfactant molecules induce the adsorption of OH(-) ions, rather than H(+) ions that prefer hydration by water molecules. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.     

Effects of ionic strength and surface charge on protein adsorption at PEGylated surfaces

PEGylated Nb2O5 surfaces were obtained by the adsorption of poly(L-lysine)-g-poly(ethylene glycol) (PLL-g-PEG) copolymers, allowing control of the PEG surface density, as well as the surface charge. PEG (MW 2 kDa) surface densities between 0 and 0.5 nm(-2) were obtained by changing the PEG to lysine-mer ratio in the PLL-g-PEG polymer, resulting in net positive, negative and neutral surfaces. Colloid probe atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to characterize the interfacial forces associated with the different surfaces. The AFM force analysis revealed interplay between electrical double layer and steric interactions, thus providing information on the surface charge and on the PEG layer thickness as a function of copolymer architecture. Adsorption of the model proteins lysozyme, alpha-lactalbumin, and myoglobin onto the various PEGylated surfaces was performed to investigate the effect of protein charge. In addition, adsorption experiments were performed over a range of ionic strengths, to study the role of electrostatic forces between surface charges and proteins acting through the PEG layer. The adsorbed mass of protein, measured by optical waveguide lightmode spectroscopy (OWLS), was shown to depend on a combination of surface charge, protein charge, PEG thickness, and grafting density. At high grafting density and high ionic strength, the steric barrier properties of PEG determine the net interfacial force. At low ionic strength, however, the electrical double layer thickness exceeds the thickness of the PEG layer, and surface charges "shining through" the PEG layer contribute to protein interactions with PLL-g-PEG coated surfaces. The combination of AFM surface force measurements and protein adsorption experiments provides insights into the interfacial forces associated with various PEGylated surfaces and the mechanisms of protein resistance.     

Changes in zeta potential caused by a dc electric current for thin double layers

An asymptotic solution was obtained to describe one-dimensional, steady-state transport of a symmetric binary electrolyte normal to two large parallel electrodes, in the limit in which the Debye length is infinitesimal compared to the distance separating the two electrodes. Despite the nonzero ion flux, Boltzmann's equation continues to describe the relationship between either ion concentration and the electrostatic potential inside the diffuse part of the double layer, while local electroneutrality applies outside, even for current densities approaching the limiting value. In the absence of ion adsorption or dissociation reactions at the electrodes, the magnitude of any charge or zeta potential arising on the electrodes at zero current is determined by the equilibrium constant for the redox reactions which would exchange ionic charge carriers for electric charge carriers at the electrode surface. Nonzero current causes the ionic strength of the bulk to vary with position. This perturbs the Debye length of the diffuse cloud on either electrode: it is the local ionic strength just outside the cloud which determines the Debye length for that cloud. Nonzero current also changes the zeta potential. The dimensionless rate of change dζ/dJ was as large as 30.     

Surface molecular imprinting on polypropylene fibers for rhodamine B selective adsorption

The interaction between silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) of different surface charge and surfactants relevant to the laundry cycle has been investigated to understand changes in speciation, both in and during transport from the washing machine. Ag NPs were synthesized to exhibit either a positive or a negative surface charge in solution conditions relevant for the laundry cycle (pH 10 and pH 7). These particles were characterized in terms of size and surface charge and compared to commercially laser ablated Ag NPs. The surfactants included anionic sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate (LAS), cationic dodecyltrimethylammoniumchloride (DTAC) and nonionic Berol 266 (Berol). Surfactant-Ag NP interactions were studied by means of dynamic light scattering, Raman spectroscopy, zeta potential, and Quartz Crystal Microbalance. Mixed bilayers of CTAB and LAS were formed through a co-operative adsorption process on positively charged Ag NPs with pre-adsorbed CTAB, resulting in charge reversal from positive to negative zeta potentials. Adsorption of DTAC on negatively charged synthesized Ag NPs and negatively charged commercial Ag NPs resulted in bilayer formation and charge reversal. Weak interactions were observed for nonionic Berol with all Ag NPs via hydrophobic interactions, which resulted in decreased zeta potentials for Berol concentrations above its critical micelle concentration. Differences in particle size were essentially not affected by surfactant adsorption, as the surfactant layer thicknesses did not exceed more than a few nanometers. The surfactant interaction with the Ag NP surface was shown to be reversible, an observation of particular importance for hazard and environmental risk assessments.     

Adsorption of Cationic Surfactants on Silica Surface: 1. Adsorption Isotherms and Surface Charge

Adsorption isotherms of cationic surfactant, dodecylpyridinium chloride, on an Aerosil OX50 and isotherms of surface charge against the background of 0.001- and 0.1-M KCl solutions at pH 7 and 9 were measured and analyzed. Different forms of adsorption isotherms of surfactants at low and high electrolyte concentrations are explained from differences in the formation of the surface charge of Aerosil. Comparison of the isotherms of surfactant adsorption and surface charge allowed us to make conclusions about the surfactant orientation and structure of an adsorption layer, as well as to determine the fraction of surfactant molecules in the first and second adsorption layers.     

Interfacial biocatalysis on charged and immobilized substrates: the roles of enzyme and substrate surface charge

An enzyme charge ladder was used to examine the role of electrostatic interactions involved in biocatalysis at the solid-liquid interface. The reactive substrate consisted of an immobilized bovine serum albumin (BSA) multilayer prepared using a layer-by-layer technique. The zeta potential of the BSA substrate and each enzyme variant was measured to determine the absolute charge in solution. Enzyme adsorption and the rate of substrate surface hydrolysis were monitored for the enzyme charge ladder series to provide information regarding the strength of the enzyme-substrate interaction and the rate of interfacial biocatalysis. First, each variant of the charge ladder was examined at pH 8 for various solution ionic strengths. We found that for positively charged variants the adsorption increased with the magnitude of the charge until the surface became saturated. For higher ionic strength solutions, a greater positive enzyme charge was required to induce adsorption. Interestingly, the maximum catalytic rate was not achieved at enzyme saturation but at an invariable intermediate level of adsorption for each ionic strength value. Furthermore, the maximum achievable reaction rate for the charge ladder was larger for higher ionic strength values. We propose that diffusion plays an important role in interfacial biocatalysis, and for strong enzyme-substrate interaction, the rate of diffusion is reduced, leading to a decrease in the overall reaction rate. We investigated the effect of substrate charge by varying the solution pH from 6.1 to 8.7 and by examining multiple ionic strength values for each pH. The same intermediate level of adsorption was found to maximize the overall reaction rate. However, the ionic strength response of the maximum achievable rate was clearly dependent on the pH of the experiment. We propose that this observation is not a direct effect of pH but is caused by the change in substrate surface charge induced by changing the pH. To prove this hypothesis, BSA substrates were chemically modified to reduce the magnitude of the negative charge at pH 8. Chemical modification was accomplished by the amidation of aspartic and glutamic acids to asparagine and glutamine. The ionic strength response of the chemically modified substrate was considerably different than that for the native BSA substrate at an identical pH, consistent with the trend based on substrate surface charge. Consequently, for substrates with a low net surface charge, the maximum achievable catalytic rate of the charge ladder was relatively independent of the solution ionic strength over the range examined; however, at high net substrate surface charge, the maximum rate showed a considerable ionic strength dependence.     

The adsorption structure of nonionic surfactant on the sessile mercury electrode in a thin liquid film

In relation to a colloid stability, the adsorption structure of the Stern layer on a sessile mercury electrode in a thin liquid film of nonionic surfactant was investigated by measuring the double layer capacitance. The Stern capacitance on the electrode in the film could be detected when the measuring frequency used was low, for the resistance of the film was not extremely high but of the order of several thousand ohm. It was found that the adsorption structure of nonionic surfactant in the thin liquid film shows a stratification different from that of bulk.     

Use of surfactants to remove water-based inks from plastic film: effect of calcium ion concentration and length of surfactant hydrophobe

Effective plastic film deinking could permit the reuse of recycled polymer to produce clear film, reduce solid waste for landfills, reduce raw material demand for polymer production, and aid process economics. In this study, the deinking of a commercial polyethylene film printed with water-based ink was studied using surfactants in the presence of hardness ions (calcium ions) at various pH levels. The electrostatic properties of ink particles in a washing bath were also investigated. Synthetic anionic surfactant or fatty acid soap in the presence of calcium ions at alkaline pH levels was found to be nearly as effective at deinking as cationic, nonionic, or amphoteric surfactants alone. However, adding calcium ions decreases the deinking effectiveness of cationic, nonionic, and amphoteric surfactants. Increasing the length of the ionic surfactant hydrophobe enhances deinking. Zeta potential measurements showed that water-based ink particles in water reach the point of zero charge (PZC) at a pH of about 3.6, above which ink particles are negatively charged, so cationic surfactant tends to adsorb better on the ink than anionic surfactant above the PZC in the absence of calcium. As the cationic surfactant concentration is varied between 0.005 and 25 mM, the zeta potential of the ink particles reverses from negative to positive owing to adsorption of cationic surfactant. For anionic surfactants, added calcium probably forms a bridge between the negatively charged ink and the negatively charged surfactant head groups, which synergizes adsorption of the surfactant and aids deinking. In contrast, calcium competes for adsorption sites with cationic and nonionic surfactants, which inhibits deinking. All the surfactants studied here disperse ink particles effectively in the washing bath above pH 3 except for the ethoxylated amine surfactant.     

Dispersion stability of a ceramic glaze achieved through ionic surfactant adsorption

The adsorption of cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) and sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate (SDBS) onto a ceramic glaze mixture composed of limestone, feldspar, quartz, and kaolin has been investigated. Both adsorption isotherms and the average particle zeta potential have been studied in order to understand the suspension stability as a function of pH, ionic strength, and surfactant concentration. The adsorption of small amounts of cationic CPC onto the primarily negatively charged surfaces of the particles at pH 7 and 9 results in strong attraction and flocculation due to hydrophobic interactions. At higher surfactant concentrations a zeta potential of more than +60 mV results from the bilayered adsorbed surfactant, providing stability at salt concentrations < or = 0.01 M. At 0.1 M salt poor stability results despite substantial zeta potential values. Three mechanisms for SDBS adsorption have been identified. When anionic SDBS monomers either adsorb by electrostatic interactions with the few positive surface sites at high pH or adsorb onto like charged negative surface sites due to dispersion or hydrophobic interactions, the magnitude of the negative zeta potential increases slightly. At pH 9 this increase is enough to promote stability with an average zeta potential of more than -55 mV, whereas at pH 7 the zeta potential is lower at about -45 mV. The stability of suspensions at pH 7 is additionally due to steric repulsion caused by the adsorption of thick layers of neutrally charged Ca(DBS)2 complexes created when the surfactant interacts with dissolved calcium ions from the calcium carbonate component.     

THEORETICAL MODELING OF IONIC SURFACTANT ADSORPTION ON MINERAL OXIDE SURFACES

A model for the adsorption of ionic surfactants on oppositely charged solid surfaces of uniform charge density is developed. The model is based on the assumption that, on the solid surface, adsorbed surfactant monomers, monolayered and bilayered surfactant aggregates of different sizes and specifically adsorbing ions of added electrolyte constitute a mixture of hard discs. It means that only excluded area interactions between the surface discs are taken into account. To avoid a rapid two-dimensional condensation of the adsorbed surfactant the potential energy per molecule in the surface aggregates, which is a sum of chemical and electrostatic interactions, is assumed to decrease linearly with the increasing aggregate size. The electrostatic interactions of ionic species with the charged solid surface are described in terms of the Guy-Chapman theory of the double layer formation. The appropriate equations for adsorption isotherms of surfactant and electrolyte ions are derived and used to predict the experimental adsorption isotherms of DTAB on the precipitated silica at two different salt concentrations in the aqueous solution, On the basis of the obtained results the evolution of the adsorbed phase structure and the charge of silica particles with an increasing surface coverage is discussed.