Spontaneous emulsification of water in oil at appreciable interfacial tensions

Oil-water de-emulsification using ultrasonic technology.

In this paper an oil-water de-emulsification process within large tanks using ultrasonic technology is presented. As the device would operate in hazardous areas, it should not consume an excessive amount of electrical power. Hence, the paper investigates the suitable oil-water concentrations (10-90% concentrations in step of 10%) which would lead to the fastest separation while consuming the mi...

Dispersion of oil into water using lecithin-Tween 80 blends: The role of spontaneous emulsification.

Lecithin-rich mixtures of the nontoxic surfactants lecithin and Tween 80 are effective marine oil spill dispersants, but produce much higher oil-water interfacial tension than other, comparably effective dispersants. This suggests interfacial phenomena other than interfacial tension influence lecithin-Tween 80 dispersants' effectiveness. The interface between seawater and dispersant-crude oil m...

Ultralow interfacial tensions in water– n -alkane–surfactant systems

Dynamic interfacial tension at the oil/surfactant-water interface.

We have used dynamic interfacial tension measurements to understand the structure of the ordered monolayer at the hexadecane/water interface induced by the presence of surfactant molecules. No abrupt changes in the interfacial tension (gamma) are observed during the expansion and contraction cycle below the interfacial ordering temperature (Ti) as observed for alkanes in contact with air. The l...

Interfacial behaviour in water-oil-amphiphile mixtures

Using a lattice model for water-oil-amphiphile mixtures, we examine the interfaces between the water-rich, oil-rich and disordered phases in the mean-field and Bethe approximations. By calculating the surface tensions between these phases along their coexistence triple line, we find that the disordered phase wets the water-oil interface when it is an ordinary disordered fluid but not when it is...