Surface tension of the Widom-Rowlinson model

We consider the computation of the surface tension of the fluid-fluid interface for the Widom-Rowlinson [J. Chem. Phys. 52, 1670 (1970)] binary mixture from direct simulation of the inhomogeneous system. We make use of the standard mechanical route, in which the surface tension follows from the computation of the normal and tangential components of the pressure tensor of the system. In addition to the usual approach, which involves simulations of the inhomogeneous system in the canonical ensemble, we also consider the computation of the surface tension in an ensemble where the pressure perpendicular (normal) to the planar interface is kept fixed. Both approaches are seen to provide consistent values of the interfacial tension. The issue of the system-size dependence of the surface tension is addressed. In addition, simulations of the fluid-fluid coexistence properties of the mixture are performed in the semigrand canonical ensemble. Our results are compared with existing data of the Widom-Rowlinson mixture and are also examined in the light of the vapor-liquid equilibrium of the thermodynamically equivalent one-component penetrable sphere model.     

Specific effect of polyunsaturated fatty acids on the cholesterol-poor membrane domain in a model membrane

To understand more fully the effect of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) on lipid bilayers, we investigated the effects of treatment with fatty acids on the properties of a model membrane. Three kinds of liposomes comprising dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC), dioleylphosphatidylcholine (DOPC), and cholesterol (Ch) were used as the model membrane, and the fluorescence anisotropy of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) and detergent insolubility were determined. Characterization of the liposomes clarified that DPPC, DPPC/Ch, and DPPC/DOPC/Ch existed as solid-ordered phase (L beta), liquid-ordered phase (l o), and a mixture of l o and liquid-disordered phase (L alpha) membranes at room temperature. Treatment with unsaturated fatty acids such as oleic acid (OA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) markedly decreased the fluorescence anisotropy value and detergent insolubility. PUFAs and OA had different effects on the model membranes. In DPPC liposomes, the most prominent change was induced by PUFAs, whereas, in DPPC/Ch and DPPC/DOPC/Ch liposomes, OA had a stronger effect than PUFAs. The effect of PUFAs was strongly affected by the amount of Ch in the membrane, which confirmed a specific effect of PUFAs on the Ch-poor membrane domain. We further explored the effect of fatty acids dispersed in a water-in-oil-in-water multiple emulsion and found that unsaturated fatty acids acted on the membranes even when incorporated in emulsion form. These findings suggest that treatment with PUFAs increases the segregation of ordered and disordered phase domains in membranes.     

Surface tension of fluoroalkanes in a liquid phase

The parachor assigned to fluorine atoms in fluorinated alkanes was examined. The values vary systematically with the number of fluorine atoms in the molecule. Partially fluorinated alkanes show large values, while perfluoroalkanes give a smaller value which is constant for all the perfluoroalkanes examined in this work. The molecular structure seems to be important for the intermolecular interaction of this series of compounds, and may be responsible for the deviation from the parachor additivity rule.     

Surface structure and stability of MoSx model clusters

Density functional theory (DFT) computations have been carried out to study the structure and stability of MoSx clusters with the change of sulfur coverage at both Mo and S edges. DFT shows that adding sulfur to the Mo edge is always exothermic. However, deleting corner sulfur from the S edge is exothermic for 67 and 50% sulfur coverages, while deleting edge sulfur from the S edge is endothermic for 33 and 0% sulfur coverages. On the basis of the computed free energies along a wide range of H2S/H2 ratios, it is found that there are two stable structures with 33 and 50% sulfur coverages on the Mo edge by having 100% sulfur coverage on the S edge and one stable structure with 67% sulfur coverage on the S edge by having 0% sulfur coverage on the Mo edge. Under fully sulfiding atmosphere or at a very high H2S/H2 ratio, triangle MoSx structures with 100% sulfur coverage on the Mo edge are computed to be more stable than those with 100% sulfur coverage on the S edge, in agreement with the observation of scanning tunneling microscopy. In addition, the effects of cluster sizes on the surface structures are discussed.     

The effect of the presence of valinomycin on the interfacial tension of lecithin membrane

The effect of the presence of valinomycin in lecithin membrane on its interfacial tension has been studied. The experiments have been carried out at various forming solution compositions and at various potassium ion concentrations in electrolyte solution. Potassium chloride was used as the electrolyte. A complex was formed between the valinomycin molecule and K+ ion. The following parameters describing the complex were determined: K, the stability constant of the valinomycin-K+ complex and B, partition coefficient. These values are equal to 3.52 x 10(5) m3 mol(-1) and 6.0, respectively.     

Surface tension of a Lennard-Jones liquid under supersaturation

A formally exact Kirkwood-Buff virial formula for the surface tension of a supersaturated interface is derived. A modified Gibbs ensemble method is given that allows the creation of interacting supersaturated phases of equal chemical potential, and which enables the Kirkwood-Buff formula to be applied. The methods are tested by Monte Carlo simulation of a supersaturated Lennard-Jones fluid with a planar liquid-vapor interface. The Kirkwood-Buff results for the supersaturated surface tension are found to be in reasonable agreement with new results obtained here using the recently developed, formally exact, ghost interface method, [M. P. Moody and P. Attard, J. Chem. Phys., 2002, 117, 6705]. The surface tension is obtained as a function of supersaturation at four temperatures, and it is found to decrease with increasing supersaturation, and to vanish at the vapor spinodal. The relevance of the present results to the nucleation of droplets in a supersaturated vapor is discussed.     

Diffusion model of solute dynamics in a membrane channel: mapping onto the two-site model and optimizing the flux

The steady-state flux through a singly occupied membrane channel is found for both discrete and continuum models of the solute dynamics in the channel. The former describes the dynamics as nearest-neighbor jumps between N sites, while the latter assumes that the molecule diffuses in a one-dimensional potential of mean force. For both models it is shown that the flux is the same as that for a simple two-site model with appropriately chosen rate constants, which contain all the relevant information about the more detailed dynamics. An interesting consequence of single occupancy is that the flux has a maximum as a function of the channel-solute interaction. If this interaction is too attractive, the molecule will never leave the channel, thus blocking it for the passage of other molecules. If it is too repulsive, the solute molecule will never enter the channel. Thus the flux vanishes in the two limits and, hence, has a maximum somewhere in-between. In the framework of the diffusion model, we find the optimal intrachannel potential of mean force that maximizes the flux using the calculus of variations. For a symmetric channel this potential is flat and occupies the entire channel. In the general case of an asymmetric channel, the optimal potential is obtained by tilting the optimal flat potential for the corresponding symmetric channel around the channel center, so that the solute is driven towards the reservoir with the lower solute concentration by a constant force. This implies that the flux is higher when the solute binding near the channel exit is stronger than that near the entrance.     

The effect of sequence on the conformational stability of a model heteropolymer in explicit water

We investigate the properties of a two-dimensional lattice heteropolymer model for a protein in which water is explicitly represented. The model protein distinguishes between hydrophobic and polar monomers through the effect of the hydrophobic monomers on the entropy and enthalpy of the hydrogen bonding of solvation shell water molecules. As experimentally observed, model heteropolymer sequences fold into stable native states characterized by a hydrophobic core to avoid unfavorable interactions with the solvent. These native states undergo cold, pressure, and thermal denaturation into distinct configurations for each type of unfolding transition. However, the heteropolymer sequence is an important element, since not all sequences will fold into stable native states at positive pressures. Simulation of a large collection of sequences indicates that these fall into two general groups, those exhibiting highly stable native structures and those that do not. Statistical analysis of important patterns in sequences shows a strong tendency for observing long blocks of hydrophobic or polar monomers in the most stable sequences. Statistical analysis also shows that alternation of hydrophobic and polar monomers appears infrequently among the most stable sequences. These observations are not absolute design rules and, in practice, these are not sufficient to rationally design very stable heteropolymers. We also study the effect of mutations on improving the stability of the model proteins, and demonstrate that it is possible to obtain a very stable heteropolymer from directed evolution of an initially unstable heteropolymer.     

Surface tension and density of a sodium hydroxide melt

The surface tension and density of a sodium hydroxide melt were determined experimentally in a wide temperature range.Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Khimii, Vol. 77, No. 12, 2004, pp. 2054–2055.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2004 by Patrov, Yurkinskii.     

Microscopic effect of an applied voltage on the solvated gramicidin a transmembrane channel in the presence of Na+ and K+ cations

Using the previously reported ab initio interaction energies among K⁺, Na⁺, water, and Gramicidin A (GA), this report presents Monte Carlo simulations for the microscopic effect of an applied voltage (0.5 V/32 Å) on a solvated gramicidin. The reorientation of water molecules due to the applied voltage is found to be marginal for both cations. The energy contribution due to water dipoles was within 10% of the total energy contribution due to the applied voltage. Inside the channel the total energy contribution varied almost linearly along the channel axis; outside the channel the slope of the total energy contribution with respect to the channel axis decreased.     

Surface tension minimum in ionic surfactant systems II. The effect of oil reservoirs

A model is developed to examine the effect of an oil reservoir on the surface tension of the air—water interface in the presence of ionizable surfactant. The minimum in the surface tension as a function of pH previously found for the case where there is no oil (and ascribed to the presence at low pH of undissolved surfactant) can also occur in the presence of an oil phase even when the system does not have an aqueous solubility edge.The oil—water interface is also discussed. The theory predicts the spontaneous emulsification of the oil—water systems over a range of pH.     

Surface tension correlation for pure polar fluids by a new molecular model and SRK equation of state

In this work, a new model based on molecular thermodynamic was presented to correlate the surface tension of pure polar liquids. This model was developed based on the Davis theory. According to this theory, the surface tension is defined as a function of radial distribution function (RDF) and potential function (PF) as well. The proposed model includes three additive terms; hard sphere, dispersion and polar interactions. The RDF of Kolafa equation of state and Dirac delta function as a PF were used for hard sphere interaction. The RDF expression of Xu and Hu was considered for both dispersion and polar interactions. The presented model has two adjustable parameters, size and energy, which were obtained by optimization of an objective function for each pure fluid. This proposed approach was used for 19 pure polar fluids divided into 6 groups; organic acids, alcohols, ketones, ethers, aldehydes, and water. The average absolute deviation percent (AAD%) obtained for 19 fluids are 0.74. Also the surface tension of these 19 fluids was calculated by the use of SRK EOS and Sugden empirical formula in two cases. In case 1, Sugden's Parachor was calculated from Hugill and van Welsenes correlation and in case 2, it was obtained by optimization of an objective function for each component. The values of AAD% are 43.544 and 2.281 for cases 1 and 2, respectively. These results show the new model, which includes two adjustable parameters, can correlate the surface tension of the pure polar liquids with a high accuracy.     

Surface tension of tactic polyvinylalcohols in water-DMSO-solution

Summary Surface tension of solutions of syndio-, iso- and atactic polyvinylalcohols in water-dimethylsulfoxide have been measured. Syndiotactic PVA is surface active with short relaxation time, nucleation and growth of the surface chains is rate determining. Isotactic surface adsorption is controlled by uncoiling of the intramolecular bonded sidegroups. If tactic PVA's have almost the same tactic percentage, tactic sequence distribution is the controlling factor which of the kind of configuration becomes surface active. Mixtures of syndio-with atactic PVA show a minimum of surface tension caused by mutual intermolecular interaction of syndiotactic sequences. Ethyleneglycol added as monomer prototype only is surface active until 20% PVA content, PVA sequences thereafter are dominating within the surface.

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Zusammenfassung Es wurde die Oberflächenspannung von Lösungen von syndio-, iso- und ataktischen Polyvinylalkoholen in Wasser-Dimethylsulfoxid gemessen. Syndiotaktisches PVA ist oberflächenaktiv mit kurzer Relaxationszeit; Keimbildung und Wachstum der Ketten in der Oberfläche bestimmen die Geschwindigkeit der Adsorption. Isotaktische Oberflächenadsorption wird durch die Entknäuelung der intramolekular verknüpften Seitengruppen kontrolliert. Wenn taktische PVA's beinahe gleichen taktischen Prozentgehalt besitzen, entscheidet die Sequenzverteilung, welche Konfiguration oberflächenaktiv wird. Mischungen von syndio- mit ataktischem PVA zeigen ein Minimum der Oberflächenspannung verursacht durch gegenseitige, intermolekulare Wechselwirkung syndiotaktischer Sequenzen. Glykol als Prototyp des Monomeren zugefügt ist nur oberflächenaktiv bis zu 20% PVA Gehalt, danach dominieren die PVA-Sequenzen in der Oberfläche.

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With 4 figures     

Using the Surface Evolver to model droplet formation processes in membrane emulsification

A model was developed to describe the droplet formation mechanism in membrane emulsification from the point of view of Gibbs free energy with the help of the Surface Evolver, which is an interactive finite element program for the study of interfaces shaped by surface tension. A program to test the model was written and run which allows the user to track the droplet shape as it grows, to identify the point of instability due to free energy, and thus predict droplet size. The inputs of the program are pore geometry, oil-aqueous phase interfacial tension, and contact angle. The model reasonably predicted droplet sizes for oblong-shaped pores under quiescent conditions where the force balance approach is not applicable. The model was validated against experimental conditions from the literature where the average error of the predictions compared to the mean droplet sizes was 8%.     

Surface tension and mechanical properties in polyolefin composites

Polyolefin composites were prepared with CaCO₃ fillers of different specific surface area. The fillers were surface treated with stearic acid between 0 and 100% surface coverage. As an effect of the treatment, surface tension of the fillers and also polymer/filler interaction decreased. The relation between interfacial interaction and mechanical properties of the composites was analysed by the equation developed earlier to describe the composition dependence of the tensile yield stress. The characteristics of the interphase were calculated, its yield stress decreases and thickness increases with increasing surface coverage. Reversible work of adhesion can be successfully related to the tensile yield stress, but a more complicated correlation exists between the thickness of the interphase and the strength of the interaction than assumed earlier. Other mechanical properties also change with the surface treatment; modulus and strength decrease and extensibility increases with decreasing polymer/filler interaction.     

Voltage dependence of a stochastic model of activation of an alpha helical S4 sensor in a K channel membrane

The voltage dependence of the ionic and gating currents of a K channel is dependent on the activation barriers of a voltage sensor with a potential function which may be derived from the principal electrostatic forces on an S4 segment in an inhomogeneous dielectric medium. By variation of the parameters of a voltage-sensing domain model, consistent with x-ray structures and biophysical data, the lowest frequency of the survival probability of each stationary state derived from a solution of the Smoluchowski equation provides a good fit to the voltage dependence of the slowest time constant of the ionic current in a depolarized membrane, and the gating current exhibits a rising phase that precedes an exponential relaxation. For each depolarizing potential, the calculated time dependence of the survival probabilities of the closed states of an alpha helical S4 sensor are in accord with an empirical model of the ionic and gating currents recorded during the activation process.