ZHAO, YAQING. Investigating Particle-Particle and Molecule-Surface Interactions Using Three-Dimensional Super Localization and Tracking Method. (Under the direction of Gufeng Wang). Single particle/molecule tracking (SPT) is among the most useful tools for investigating dynamic processes at individual molecule level in chemical and biological systems. Conventional SPT is limited to two dimensio...

Surface forces play a fundamental role in particle processing as they control the stability, adhesion, friction and rheology of particulate systems and information on all of these can be obtained from an analysis of the normal forces measured between particles. Therefore particle processing at all stages can be informed by knowledge of the forces between the constituent particles. For wet parti...

Flocculation is a key unit operation in domestic and industrial water treatment, beneficiation of minerals, dewatering of sludges and in many industrial solid-liquid separation processes. Coagulants and flocculants are commonly employed as additives to induce aggregation and improve subsequent filtration or dewatering operations. The characteristics of these additives have a strong influence on...

Abstract Critical salt concentration (CSC) is the minimum of injected water used for different oil recovery operations, below which fines migration initiates within sandstone reservoirs having clay contents and could be one potential causes formation damage. This paper estimated CSC Berea sandstone-NaCl brine system experimentally by using DLVO modeling based on Van der Waals electric double la...

We analyze the relative importance of droplet deformation, surfactant transfer and interfacial rheology for the properties and stability of emulsions. The appearance of deformation (flattening or film) in the zone of contact of two interacting droplets has the following consequences. It enhances the importance of the surface forces of intermolecular origin and gives rise to contributions from t...

Nanoparticles are excellent catalysts due to their high surface area volume ratio that results in an increased number of catalytically active sites per unit mass. This plethora highly reactive is often contrast with the catalyst stability. Capping agents used maintain stability against aggregation; they can however have adverse effects on catalytic activity nanoparticles by obstructing reactant...

This work is devoted to the synthesis and stabilization of magnetorheological suspensions constituted by monodisperse micrometer-sized magnetite spheres in aqueous media. The electrical double-layer characteristics of the solid/liquid interface were studied in the absence and presence of adsorbed layers of high molecular weight polyacrylic acids (PAA; Carbopol). Since the Carbopol-covered parti...

The anomalous stability of magic-number metal clusters has been associated with closed geometric and electronic shells and the opening of HOMO-LUMO gaps. Despite this enhanced stability, magic-number clusters are known to decay and react in the condensed phase to form other products. Improving our understanding of their decay mechanisms and developing strategies to control or eliminate cluster ...

the soil particles and aggregates. Dispersion or flocculation of clays occurs because of the repulsion of similar Reclamation of sodic soils is imperative in many areas where detericharged clay platelets and the ability of the soil solution oration of land and water resources is in progress. While the chemical mechanisms involved in the reclamation of sodic soils are well deto mitigate this rep...