Rheology of interfacial layers

Relevance of the air-water interfacial and foaming properties of (modified) wheat proteins for food systems

A shift from animal protein- to plant protein-based foods is crucial in transitioning toward a more sustainable global food system. Among food products typically stabilized by animal proteins, food foams represent a major category. Wheat proteins are ubiquitous and structurally diverse, which offers opportunities for exploiting them for food foam and air-water interface stabilization. Notably, they are often classified into those that are soluble in aqueous systems (albumins and globulins) and those that are not (gliadins and glutenins). However, gliadins are at least to an extent water extractable and thus surface active. We here provide a comprehensive overview of studies investigating the air-water interfacial and foaming properties of the different wheat protein fractions. Characteristics in model systems are related to the functional role that wheat proteins play in gas cell stabilization in existing wheat-based foods (bread dough, cake batter, and beer foam). Still, to further extend the applicability of wheat proteins, and particularly the poorly soluble glutenins, to other food foams, their modification is required. Different physical, (bio)chemical, and other modification strategies that have been utilized to alter the solubility and therefore the air-water interfacial and foaming properties of the gluten protein fraction are critically reviewed. Such approaches may open up new opportunities for the application of (modified) gluten proteins in other food products, such as plant-based meringues, whippable drinks, or ice cream. In each section, important knowledge gaps are highlighted and perspectives for research efforts that could lead to the rational design of wheat protein systems with enhanced functionality and overall an increased applicability in food industry are proposed.

Emulsion-Based Coatings for Preservation of Meat and Related Products

One of the biggest challenges faced by the meat industry is maintaining the freshness of meat while extending its shelf life. Advanced packaging systems and food preservation techniques are highly beneficial in this regard. However, the energy crisis and environmental pollution demand an economically feasible and environmentally sustainable preservation method. Emulsion coatings (ECs) are highly trending in the food packaging industry. Efficiently developed coatings can preserve food, increase nutritional composition, and control antioxidants' release simultaneously. However, their construction has many challenges, especially for meat. Therefore, the following review focuses on the essential aspects of developing ECs for meat. The study begins by classifying emulsions based on composition and particle size, followed by a discussion on the physical properties, such as ingredient separation, rheology, and thermal characteristics. Furthermore, it discusses the lipid and protein oxidation and antimicrobial characteristics of ECs, which are necessary for other aspects to be relevant. Lastly, the review presents the limitations of the literature while discussing the future trends. ECs fabricated with antimicrobial/antioxidant properties present promising results in increasing the shelf life of meat while preserving its sensory aspects. In general, ECs are highly sustainable and effective packaging systems for meat industries.

Multiscale combined techniques for evaluating emulsion stability: A critical review

Emulsions are multiscale and thermodynamically unstable systems which will undergo various unstable processes over time. The behavior of emulsifier molecules at the oil-water interface and the properties of the interfacial film are very important to the stability of the emulsion. In this paper, we mainly discussed the instability phenomena and mechanisms of emulsions, the effects of interfacial films on the long-term stability of emulsions and summarized a set of systematic multiscale combined methods for studying emulsion stability, including droplet size and distribution, zeta-potential, the continuous phase viscosity, adsorption mass and thickness of the interfacial film, interfacial dilatational rheology, interfacial shear rheology, particle tracking microrheology, visualization technologies of the interfacial film, molecular dynamics simulation and the quantitative evaluation methods of emulsion stability. This review provides the latest research progress and a set of systematic multiscale combined techniques and methods for researchers who are committed to the study of oil-water interface and emulsion stability. In addition, this review has important guiding significances for designing and customizing interfacial films with different properties, so as to obtain emulsion-based delivery systems with varying stability, oil digestibility and bioactive substance utilization.

Adsorption of sterically-stabilized diblock copolymer nanoparticles at the oil-water interface: effect of charged end-groups on interfacial rheology

The RAFT aqueous emulsion polymerization of either methyl methacrylate (MMA) or benzyl methacrylate (BzMA) is conducted at 70 °C using poly(glycerol monomethacrylate) (PGMA) as a water-soluble precursor to produce sterically-stabilized diblock copolymer nanoparticles of approximately 30 nm diameter. Carboxylic acid- or morpholine-functional RAFT agents are employed to confer anionic or cationic functionality at the ends of the PGMA stabilizer chains, with a neutral RAFT agent being used as a control. Thus the electrophoretic footprint of such minimally-charged model nanoparticles can be adjusted simply by varying the solution pH. Giant (mm-sized) aqueous droplets containing such nanoparticles are then grown within a continuous phase of n-dodecane and a series of interfacial rheology measurements are conducted. The interfacial tension between the aqueous phase and n-dodecane is strongly dependent on the charge of the terminal group on the stabilizer chains. More specifically, neutral nanoparticles produce a significantly lower interfacial tension than either cationic or anionic nanoparticles. Moreover, adsorption of neutral nanoparticles at the n-dodecane-water interface produces higher interfacial elastic moduli than that observed for charged nanoparticles. This is because neutral nanoparticles can adsorb at much higher surface packing densities owing to the absence of electrostatic repulsive forces in this case.

Dilational Rheological Properties of Surfactants at the Crude Oil-Water Interface: The Effect of Branch-Preformed Particle Gels and Polymers

The interfacial properties of a heterogeneous composite flooding system containing a surfactant fatty alcohol polyoxyethylene carboxylate (C₁₂EO₃C), branched-preformed particle gel (B-PPG), and polymer partly hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (HPAM) at the crude oil-water interface were investigated by a dilational rheology method. The results demonstrated that the C₁₂EO₃C molecules can form an elastic interfacial film with certain strength at the crude oil-water interface. The addition of HPAM to the C₁₂EO₃C solution has a detrimental effect on the interfacial film formed by C₁₂EO₃C molecules, leading to a decrease in the dilational modulus and an increase in the phase angle. Moreover, the addition of B-PPG to the C₁₂EO₃C solution also disrupts the stability and strength of the interfacial film of C₁₂EO₃C. In particular, linear HPAM with a lower steric hindrance is more likely to insert into the interfacial film of C₁₂EO₃C; thus, HPAM possesses a stronger destruction ability for the interfacial film of C₁₂EO₃C than B-PPG. When HPAM is compounded with B-PPG, a superimposed effect exists to cause more severe disruption for the interfacial film. The heterogeneous composite flooding system not only enhances oil recovery by increasing the viscosity of the bulk phase but also weakens the interfacial film to facilitate the post-treatment of the recovered crude oil. Thus, the heterogeneous composite flooding system exhibits promising prospects in practical application.

Proposed Methods for Testing and Comparing the Emulsifying Properties of Proteins from Animal, Plant, and Alternative Sources

The food industry is trying to reformulate many of its products to replace functional ingredients that are chemically synthesized or isolated from animal sources (such as meat, fish, eggs, or milk) with ingredients derived from plant or microbial sources. This effort is largely a result of the demand for foods that are better for the environment, human health, and animal welfare. Many new kinds of plant- or microbial-derived proteins are being isolated for potential utilization as functional ingredients by the food industry. A major challenge in this area is the lack of standardized methods to measure and compare the functional performance of proteins under conditions they might be used in food applications. This information is required to select the most appropriate protein for each application. In this article, we discuss the physicochemical principles of emulsifier functionality and then present a series of analytical tests that can be used to quantify the ability of proteins to form and stabilize emulsions. These tests include methods for characterizing the effectiveness of the proteins to promote the formation and stability of the small droplets generated during homogenization, as well as their ability to stabilize the droplets against aggregation under different conditions (e.g., pH, ionic composition, temperature, and shearing). This information should be useful to the food industry when it is trying to identify alternative proteins to replace existing emulsifiers in specific food applications.

Effects of Asphaltene Concentration and Test Temperature on the Stability of Water-in-Model Waxy Crude Oil Emulsions

In oil fields, the formation of water-in-waxy crude oil emulsion is inevitable. The dissolved/crystallized state wax can interact with asphaltenes and then greatly affect the emulsion stability. However, studies on this aspect are still insufficient. In this work, the effects of the test temperature (30 °C well above the wax appearance temperature (WAT) and 15 °C well below the WAT) and asphaltene concentration (0∼1.5 wt %) on the stability of the water-in-model waxy crude oil emulsions containing 10 wt % wax were systematically investigated. When the model crude oils contain no wax, the flowability of the oils is good and the asphaltene concentration has little influence on the oil rheology. Increasing the asphaltene concentration facilitates the adsorption of asphaltenes to the oil-water interface, thus reducing the interfacial tension and water droplet size while enhancing the interfacial dilatational modulus. The stability of the emulsions improves with the increase in the asphaltene concentration, but the emulsions are still unstable. When the model crude oils contain 10 wt % wax, the WAT slightly decreases from the initial 25 to 24 °C after the addition of asphaltenes. The oil rheology is greatly improved by the addition of 0.05 wt % asphaltenes. With the further increase of the asphaltene concentration, the improved rheological ability of the asphaltenes deteriorates rapidly. At the asphaltene concentration of 1.5 wt %, the oil rheology is dramatically aggravated. The stability of the emulsion containing 10 wt % wax is mainly controlled by two aspects: on the one hand, the dissolved-state wax (30 °C) could facilitate the adsorption of asphaltenes to the interface, further reduce the interfacial tension and the water droplet size, and enhance the interfacial dilatational modulus; on the other hand, the wax crystals precipitated in the oil phase (15 °C) can form a stronger network structure at relatively high asphaltene concentrations (0.5∼1.5 wt %) and then immobilize the water droplets. The above two aspects greatly improve the sedimentation and coalescence stabilities of the emulsions at 15 °C. In addition, we did not find persuasive evidence showing that the wax could crystallize around the water droplets and strengthen the oil-water interfacial films.

The Past and the Future of Langmuir and Langmuir-Blodgett Films

The Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) technique, through which monolayers are transferred from the air/water interface onto a solid substrate, was the first method to allow for the controlled assembly of organic molecules. With its almost 100 year history, it has been the inspiration for most methods to functionalize surfaces and produce nanocoatings, in addition to serving to explore concepts in molecular electronics and nanoarchitectonics. This paper provides an overview of the history of Langmuir monolayers and LB films, including the potential use in devices and a discussion on why LB films are seldom considered for practical applications today. Emphasis is then given to two areas where these films offer unique opportunities, namely, in mimicking cell membrane models and exploiting nanoarchitectonics concepts to produce sensors, investigate molecular recognitions, and assemble molecular machines. The most promising topics for the short- and long-term prospects of the LB technique are also highlighted.

Study on the Liquid-Liquid and Liquid-Solid Interfacial Behavior of Functionalized Graphene Oxide

With the rise of carbon neutrality, the applications of carbon-based materials are gaining considerable attention. Graphene oxide (GO) is a two-dimensional sheet with epoxy and hydroxyl groups on the basal plane and carboxyl groups at the edge. In order to change the oil/water (o/w) interfacial activity, GO was controlled and modified by dodecylamine to get two kinds of functionalized GOs (fGOs), named as basal plane-functionalized GO (bGO) and edge-functionalized GO (eGO), respectively. The interfacial tension measurement showed that fGOs could reduce more interfacial tension at the poly-α-olefin/water interface than those at synthetic esters or aromatic compounds/water interfaces. Besides, eGO can reduce more poly-α-olefin-4/water interfacial tension compared to bGO. The interfacial dilatational rheology of eGO and fatty alcohol polyoxyethylene ether-4 (MOA4) showed that MOA4 gradually replaced eGO at the interface with the increase of MOA4, until the interface was completely occupied. eGO and MOA4 complex emulsion exhibited the best friction-reducing performance at 250 rpm. The coefficient of friction (COF) curves of the emulsions with eGO showed two platforms, with the COF reduced by 37.42% at the most. The rheological results of emulsions showed that the addition of eGO increased the elasticity of the emulsion. Emulsions showed shear-thinning and friction-thickening properties, which make it easier for the emulsion to form a lubricating film on the metal surface. Our research results suggested that the functionalization on the edge of GO will change the interfacial properties significantly, which have widespread applications in the encapsulation of active materials, surface protection, adsorption, and separation of pollutants.

Interfacial properties of milk proteins: A review

The interfacial properties of dairy proteins are of great interest to the food industry. Food manufacturing involves various environmental conditions and multiple processes that significantly alter the structure and colloidal stability of food materials. The effects of concentration, pH, heat treatment, addition of salts etc., have considerable influence on the surface activity of proteins and the mechanical properties of the interfacial protein films. Studies to date have established some understanding of the links between environmental and processing related parameters and their impacts on interfacial behavior. Improvement in knowledge may allow better design of interfacial protein structures for different food applications. This review examines the effects of environmental and processing conditions on the interfacial properties of dairy proteins with emphasis on interfacial tension dynamics, dilatational and surface shear rheological properties. The most commonly used surface analytical techniques along with relevant methods are also addressed.

Foaming and rheological properties of aqueous solutions: an interfacial study

Although aqueous foam is composed of simple fluids, air and water, it shows a complex rheological behavior. It exhibits solid-like behavior at low shear and fluid-like behavior at high shear rate. Therefore, understanding such behavior is important for many industrial applications in foods, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics. Additionally, air–water interface of bubble surface plays an important role in the stabilizing mechanism of foams. Therefore, the rheological properties associated with the aqueous foam highly depend on its interfacial properties. In this review, a systematic study of aqueous foam are presented primarily from rheology point of view. Firstly, foaming agents, surfactants and particles are described; then foam structure was explained, followed by change in structure under applied shear. Finally, foam rheology was linked to interfacial rheology for the interface containing particles whose surface properties were altered by surfactants.

Evolution of adsorbed layers of asphaltenes at oil-water interfaces: A novel experimental protocol

HYPOTHESIS

Asphaltenes can form rigid interfacial films surrounding water droplets rendering water separation from crude oil sluggish. Therefore, the quantitative characterization of such complex film formation is of great importance. As the adsorbed layers of asphaltene illustrate crumpling under compression at certain conditions, the evolution process from soft to rigid states of the film can be evaluated considering standard deviations from Young-Laplace shape fitting.

EXPERIMENTAL

In this study, novel experimental protocols are introduced to investigate the evolution of adsorbed asphaltene layer to a film of aggregates at model oil/water interface by means of dynamic interfacial tension (IFT) and dilational surface rheology measurements. In particular, the surface elasticity and standard deviation from the Young-Laplace shape fitting (YL-SD) are introduced as important indicators for the transformation of a regular asphaltene adsorbed layer to a film of aggregates. Different parameters affecting the film formation and stability, such as aging time, asphaltene concentration, and history of interfacial dynamics, are discussed and linked to emulsion stability.

FINDINGS

It is shown for the first time that the standard deviation of drop profile fitting from the Young-Laplace equation can be used as a rigorous parameter to reveal the properties of the interfacial asphaltene film, which cannot be recognized by regular IFT measurements. Via this novel technique, it is revealed that the transformation of an asphaltene adsorbed layer to a rigid film depends not only on the asphaltene concentration but also on the aging time and the interfacial area perturbations. The results of this new method are supported by measurements of the dilational surface elasticity, which is known as an important parameter for the characterization of complex adsorbed layers, and further verified by an emulsion stability analysis.

Kinetic stability of the oil-in-water emulsions and dynamic interfacial properties of mixtures of sucrose esters and polysaccharides

This article presents a study of the interfacial properties of oil-in-water emulsions containing sugar esters and polysaccharides. Sucrose fatty acid esters were synthesized using immobilized Candida antarctica lipase B. A yield of 53.4% was obtained using 2-methyl-2-butanol and 1:3 M ratio of sucrose:stearic acid. Equilibrium surface tension was 45 mN/m and low critical micellar concentration (CMC) value was obtained (ca. 10 mg/mL), characteristic of non-ionic surfactant. The interfacial properties of mixtures of sucrose esters and polysaccharides, at the oil-water interface were determined using a pendant drop tensiometer. Addition of polysaccharides increased the interfacial tension. Studies of interfacial viscoelasticity showed that the films were predominantly elastic. The presence of polysaccharides in emulsions resulted in flocculated droplets. All the emulsions presented great stability along 28 days with no creaming formation.

Dipole-dipole interactions control the interfacial rheological response of cyclodextrin/surfactant solutions

A recent surface rheological study has shown that aqueous solutions of α-cyclodextrin (αCD) with anionic surfactants (S) display a remarkable viscoelasticity at the liquid/air interface, which has not been observed in similar systems. The dilatational modulus is various orders of magnitude larger than those for the binary mixtures αCD + water and S + water. The rheological response has been qualitatively related to the bulk distribution of species, the 2 : 1 inclusion complexes (αCD2 : S) playing a fundamental role. In this work, we have developed a model that considers dipole-dipole interactions between 2 : 1 inclusion complexes ordered on the liquid/air interface. When the model is applied to the specific experimental conditions, the dependencies on concentration and temperature of the dilatational modulus and the surface tension were found to be in excellent agreement with the data, indicating clearly that dipole-dipole interactions determine and control the rheological behavior of the interface.

Janus Particles at Fluid Interfaces: Stability and Interfacial Rheology

The use of the Janus motif in colloidal particles, i.e., anisotropic surface properties on opposite faces, has gained significant attention in the bottom-up assembly of novel functional structures, design of active nanomotors, biological sensing and imaging, and polymer blend compatibilization. This review is focused on the behavior of Janus particles in interfacial systems, such as particle-stabilized (i.e., Pickering) emulsions and foams, where stabilization is achieved through the binding of particles to fluid interfaces. In many such applications, the interface could be subjected to deformations, producing compression and shear stresses. Besides the physicochemical properties of the particle, their behavior under flow will also impact the performance of the resulting system. This review article provides a synopsis of interfacial stability and rheology in particle-laden interfaces to highlight the role of the Janus motif, and how particle anisotropy affects interfacial mechanics.

A miniaturized radial Langmuir trough for simultaneous dilatational deformation and interfacial microscopy

INNOVATION

Interfacial rheological properties of complex fluid-fluid interfaces are strongly influenced by the film microstructure. Experimental investigations for correlating interfacial morphology and rheology are notoriously challenging. A miniaturized radial Langmuir trough was developed to study complex fluid-fluid interfaces under purely dilatational deformations that operates in tandem with a conventional inverted microscope for simultaneous interfacial visualization.

EXPERIMENTS

Two materials were investigated at an air-water interface: poly(tert-butyl methacrylate) (PtBMA) and dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC). Surface pressure measurements made in the radial Langmuir trough were compared with a commercial rectangular Langmuir trough. Interfacial in situ visualization for each material was performed during the compression cycle in the radial trough. Challenges associated with the small size of the radial Langmuir trough, such as the influence of capillary deformation on the measured surface pressure, are also quantified.

FINDINGS

Measured surface pressures between the newly developed radial trough and the rectangular Langmuir trough compare well. Micrographs obtained in the radial Langmuir trough were used to obtain film properties such as Young's modulus. The new advance in colloid and interface science is the ability to capture structure-property relationships of planar interfaces using microscopy and purely dilatational deformation. This will advance the development of constitutive modeling of complex fluid-fluid interfaces.

Stem Cell Expansion and Fate Decision on Liquid Substrates Are Regulated by Self-Assembled Nanosheets

The culture of adherent cells is overwhelmingly relying on the use of solid substrates to support cell adhesion. Indeed, it is typically thought that relatively strong bulk mechanical properties (bulk moduli in the range of kPa to GPa) are essential to promote cell adhesion and, in turn, regulate cell expansion and fate decision. In this report, we show that adherent stem cells such as mesenchymal stem cells and primary keratinocytes can be cultured at the surface of liquid substrates and that this phenomenon is mediated by the assembly of polymer nanosheets at the liquid-liquid interface. We use interfacial rheology to quantify this assembly and demonstrate the strong mechanical properties of such nanosheets. Importantly, we show that cell adhesion to such quasi-2D materials is mediated by the classical integrin/acto-myosin machinery, despite the absence of bulk mechanical properties of the underlying liquid substrate. Finally, we show that stem cell proliferation and fate decision are also regulated by the mechanical properties of these self-assembled protein nanosheets. Liquid substrates offer attractive features for the culture of adherent cells and stem cells, and the development of novel stem cell technologies, such as liquid-liquid systems, are particularly well-adapted to automated parallel processing and scale up.

Interfacial rheology of model particles at liquid interfaces and its relation to (bicontinuous) Pickering emulsions

Interface-dominated materials are commonly encountered in both science and technology, and typical examples include foams and emulsions. Conventionally stabilised by surfactants, emulsions can also be stabilised by micron-sized particles. These so-called Pickering-Ramsden (PR) emulsions have received substantial interest, as they are model arrested systems, rather ubiquitous in industry and promising templates for advanced materials. The mechanical properties of the particle-laden liquid-liquid interface, probed via interfacial rheology, have been shown to play an important role in the formation and stability of PR emulsions. However, the morphological processes which control the formation of emulsions and foams in mixing devices, such as deformation, break-up, and coalescence, are complex and diverse, making it difficult to identify the precise role of the interfacial rheological properties. Interestingly, the role of interfacial rheology in the stability of bicontinuous PR emulsions (bijels) has been virtually unexplored, even though the phase separation process which leads to the formation of these systems is relatively simple and the interfacial deformation processes can be better conceptualised. Hence, the aims of this topical review are twofold. First, we review the existing literature on the interfacial rheology of particle-laden liquid interfaces in rheometrical flows, focussing mainly on model latex suspensions consisting of polystyrene particles carrying sulfate groups, which have been most extensively studied to date. The goal of this part of the review is to identify the generic features of the rheology of such systems. Secondly, we will discuss the relevance of these results to the formation and stability of PR emulsions and bijels.

Effects of multiple freeze–thaw treatments on physicochemical and biological activities of egg phosvitin and its phosphopeptides

Multiple freeze–thaw treatments improved the emulsifying and biological activities of egg phosvitin.

Dynamics of drops – Formation, growth, oscillation, detachment, and coalescence

Single drops or bubbles are frequently used for the characterization of liquid-fluid interfaces. Their advantage is the small volume and the various protocols of their formation. Thus, several important methods are based on single drops and bubbles, such as capillary pressure and profile analysis tensiometry. However, these methods are often applied under dynamic conditions, although their principles are defined under equilibrium conditions. Thus, specific attention has to be paid when these methods are used beyond certain limits. In many cases, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations have allowed researchers, to extend these limits and to gain important information on the interfacial dynamics. Examples discussed here are the capillary pressure tensiometry used for short time and profile analysis tensiometry for long time dynamic interfacial tension measurements, the oscillating drop methods for measuring dilational visco-elasticity. For measuring the coalescence of two drops the liquid dynamics of the subsequently formed liquid bridges have to be considered. In this paper, a thorough review of important experimental and computational findings, related to the dynamics of drops, including its formation, growth, oscillation, detachment, and coalescence is presented. Emphasis is however on some selected important developments. In addition, the paper tries to predict the main directions of advancement in interfacial research for the near future.

Sound propagation in liquid foams: Unraveling the balance between physical and chemical parameters

We present experimental results on the propagation of an ultrasonic wave (40 kHz) in liquid foams, as a function of the foam physical and chemical parameters. We have first implemented an original setup, using transducers in a transmission configuration. The foam coarsening was used to vary the bubble size (remaining in the submillimeter range), and we have made foams with various chemical formulations, to investigate the role of the chemicals at the bubble interfaces or in bulk. The results are compared with recently published theoretical works, and good agreements are found. In particular, for all the foams, we have evidenced two asymptotic limits, at small and large bubble size, connected by a nontrivial resonant behavior, associated to an effective negative density. These qualitative features are robust whatever the chemical formulation; we discuss the observed differences between the samples, in relation to the interfacial and bulk viscoelasticity. These results demonstrate the rich and complex acoustic behavior of foams. While the bubble size remain here always smaller than the sound wavelength, it turns out that one must go well beyond mean-field modeling to describe the foam acoustic properties.