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Le Dizès Castell R, Mirzahossein E, Grzelka M, Jabbari-Farouji S, Bonn D, Shahidzadeh N. Visualization of the Sol-Gel Transition in Porous Networks Using Fluorescent Viscosity-Sensitive Probes. J Phys Chem Lett 2024; 15:628-635. [PMID: 38205957 PMCID: PMC10801688 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.3c02634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2023] [Revised: 11/21/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
The sol-gel transition involves the transformation of a colloidal suspension into a system-spanning, interconnected gel. This process is widely used to reinforce mechanically weakened porous artifacts, such as sculptures but the impact of the restricted geometry (porous network) on the gelation dynamics of the solution remains unclear. Here, using fluorescent viscosity-sensitive molecular rotors, confocal microscopy, and model pores, we visualize the local viscosity changes at the microscale that accompany the sol-gel transition of a methyltriethoxysilane solution into a gel network. We show that, with evaporation of the solvent, a viscosity gradient develops near the free surface, triggering the sol-gel transition inside small pores near the surface. In homogeneous porous media, this leads to skin formation, which reduces the evaporation rate. In heterogeneous porous media, a gradient in gel density develops toward the heart of the porous material, where the gel formation mainly occurs as capillary bridges within smaller pores.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Elham Mirzahossein
- Institute
of Physics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1098XH, The Netherlands
| | - Marion Grzelka
- Laboratoire
Léon Brillouin, Université Paris-Saclay, CEA-Saclay, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette
Cedex, France
| | - Sara Jabbari-Farouji
- Institute
of Physics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1098XH, The Netherlands
| | - Daniel Bonn
- Institute
of Physics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1098XH, The Netherlands
| | - Noushine Shahidzadeh
- Institute
of Physics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1098XH, The Netherlands
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Savchenko M, Sebastian V, Lopez-Lopez MT, Rodriguez-Navarro A, Alvarez De Cienfuegos L, Jimenez-Lopez C, Gavira JA. Magnetite Mineralization inside Cross-Linked Protein Crystals. CRYSTAL GROWTH & DESIGN 2023; 23:4032-4040. [PMID: 37304398 PMCID: PMC10251750 DOI: 10.1021/acs.cgd.2c01436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2022] [Revised: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Crystallization in confined spaces is a widespread process in nature that also has important implications for the stability and durability of many man-made materials. It has been reported that confinement can alter essential crystallization events, such as nucleation and growth and, thus, have an impact on crystal size, polymorphism, morphology, and stability. Therefore, the study of nucleation in confined spaces can help us understand similar events that occur in nature, such as biomineralization, design new methods to control crystallization, and expand our knowledge in the field of crystallography. Although the fundamental interest is clear, basic models at the laboratory scale are scarce mainly due to the difficulty in obtaining well-defined confined spaces allowing a simultaneous study of the mineralization process outside and inside the cavities. Herein, we have studied magnetite precipitation in the channels of cross-linked protein crystals (CLPCs) with different channel pore sizes, as a model of crystallization in confined spaces. Our results show that nucleation of an Fe-rich phase occurs inside the protein channels in all cases, but, by a combination of chemical and physical effects, the channel diameter of CLPCs exerted a precise control on the size and stability of those Fe-rich nanoparticles. The small diameters of protein channels restrain the growth of metastable intermediates to around 2 nm and stabilize them over time. At larger pore diameters, recrystallization of the Fe-rich precursors into more stable phases was observed. This study highlights the impact that crystallization in confined spaces can have on the physicochemical properties of the resulting crystals and shows that CLPCs can be interesting substrates to study this process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariia Savchenko
- Departamento
de Química Orgánica, Facultad de Ciencias, Unidad de
Excelencia de Química Aplicada a Biomedicina y Medioambiente
(UEQ), Universidad de Granada, 18002 Granada, Spain
- Laboratorio
de Estudios Cristalográficos, Instituto
Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones
Científicas-Universidad de Granada), Avenida de las Palmeras 4, 18100 Armilla, Granada, Spain
- Departamento
de Física Aplicada, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, 18002 Granada, Spain
| | - Victor Sebastian
- Department
of Chemical Engineering and Environmental Technology, Instituto de
Nanociencia y Materiales de Aragón (INMA), CSIC-Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza 50009, Spain
- Networking
Research Center on Bioengineering Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-
BBN), Madrid 28029, Spain
| | - Modesto Torcuato Lopez-Lopez
- Departamento
de Física Aplicada, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, 18002 Granada, Spain
- Instituto
de Investigación Biosanitaria ibs, Granada 18012, Spain
| | - Alejandro Rodriguez-Navarro
- Departamento
de Mineralogía y Petrología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, 18002 Granada, Spain
| | - Luis Alvarez De Cienfuegos
- Departamento
de Química Orgánica, Facultad de Ciencias, Unidad de
Excelencia de Química Aplicada a Biomedicina y Medioambiente
(UEQ), Universidad de Granada, 18002 Granada, Spain
- Instituto
de Investigación Biosanitaria ibs, Granada 18012, Spain
| | - Concepcion Jimenez-Lopez
- Departamento
de Microbiología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, Campus de Fuentenueva s/n, 18002 Granada, Spain
| | - José Antonio Gavira
- Laboratorio
de Estudios Cristalográficos, Instituto
Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones
Científicas-Universidad de Granada), Avenida de las Palmeras 4, 18100 Armilla, Granada, Spain
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3
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Sajjad M, Li H, Raza A, AlMarzooqi F, Zhang T. Insights into capillary-driven motion of micro-particles interacting with advancing meniscus on a substrate. SOFT MATTER 2022; 18:8894-8905. [PMID: 36377732 DOI: 10.1039/d2sm01134d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Liquid-particle interactions at the micro-scale are quite different from the corresponding macro-scale interactions due to the substantial role of capillary forces. Herein, we explore the interaction of a single micro-particle with an air-liquid-substrate contact line. The interaction features ballistic-like motion of micro-particles toward the interacting three-phase contact line with velocities as high as 0.46 m s-1. Through high-speed optical imaging, we elucidate the interaction mechanism and associated intertwined dynamics, including evolution and backward dragging of the transient air-liquid-particle contact line, capillary-inertial launch of micro-particles and its subsequent trapping at the air-liquid-substrate contact line. Based on the force analysis, we build a model to predict the particle velocity profile during the interaction. Our experimental results show that both hydrophilic and hydrophobic micro-particles exhibit capillary-driven motion. The maximum velocity of the hydrophobic particle, as well as its total displacement, is smaller than that of the hydrophilic one with the same particle size. Micro-particle lifting, like dust removal from self-cleaning surfaces, is observed when the dynamic contact angle of the air-liquid-substrate contact line is sufficiently high (i.e. >100°). We also develop criteria for the capillary-driven motion of particles and predict the critical size for particle motion. These findings are valuable to various applications including capillary-driven self-cleaning, pickering emulsions, micro-scale fluid structure interactions and capillary dynamics in porous media.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Sajjad
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Masdar Institute, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, P. O. Box 127788, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Khwaja Fareed University of Engineering and Information Technology, Rahim Yar Khan, P. O. Box 64200, Pakistan
| | - Hongxia Li
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Masdar Institute, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, P. O. Box 127788, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
| | - Aikifa Raza
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Masdar Institute, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, P. O. Box 127788, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
| | - Faisal AlMarzooqi
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Masdar Institute, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, P. O. Box 127788, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - TieJun Zhang
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Masdar Institute, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, P. O. Box 127788, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
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Bacchin P, Leng J, Salmon JB. Microfluidic Evaporation, Pervaporation, and Osmosis: From Passive Pumping to Solute Concentration. Chem Rev 2021; 122:6938-6985. [PMID: 34882390 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.1c00459] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Evaporation, pervaporation, and forward osmosis are processes leading to a mass transfer of solvent across an interface: gas/liquid for evaporation and solid/liquid (membrane) for pervaporation and osmosis. This Review provides comprehensive insight into the use of these processes at the microfluidic scales for applications ranging from passive pumping to the screening of phase diagrams and micromaterials engineering. Indeed, for a fixed interface relative to the microfluidic chip, these processes passively induce flows driven only by gradients of chemical potential. As a consequence, these passive-transport phenomena lead to an accumulation of solutes that cannot cross the interface and thus concentrate solutions in the microfluidic chip up to high concentration regimes, possibly up to solidification. The purpose of this Review is to provide a unified description of these processes and associated microfluidic applications to highlight the differences and similarities between these three passive-transport phenomena.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrice Bacchin
- Laboratoire de Génie Chimique, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, INPT, UPS, 31000 Toulouse, France
| | - Jacques Leng
- CNRS, Solvay, LOF, UMR 5258, Université de Bordeaux, 33600 Pessac, France
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Meldrum FC, O'Shaughnessy C. Crystallization in Confinement. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2020; 32:e2001068. [PMID: 32583495 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202001068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 96] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2020] [Revised: 03/26/2020] [Accepted: 03/27/2020] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
Many crystallization processes of great importance, including frost heave, biomineralization, the synthesis of nanomaterials, and scale formation, occur in small volumes rather than bulk solution. Here, the influence of confinement on crystallization processes is described, drawing together information from fields as diverse as bioinspired mineralization, templating, pharmaceuticals, colloidal crystallization, and geochemistry. Experiments are principally conducted within confining systems that offer well-defined environments, varying from droplets in microfluidic devices, to cylindrical pores in filtration membranes, to nanoporous glasses and carbon nanotubes. Dramatic effects are observed, including a stabilization of metastable polymorphs, a depression of freezing points, and the formation of crystals with preferred orientations, modified morphologies, and even structures not seen in bulk. Confinement is also shown to influence crystallization processes over length scales ranging from the atomic to hundreds of micrometers, and to originate from a wide range of mechanisms. The development of an enhanced understanding of the influence of confinement on crystal nucleation and growth will not only provide superior insight into crystallization processes in many real-world environments, but will also enable this phenomenon to be used to control crystallization in applications including nanomaterial synthesis, heavy metal remediation, and the prevention of weathering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fiona C Meldrum
- School of Chemistry, University of Leeds, Woodhouse Lane, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK
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Houssais M, Maldarelli C, Morris JF. Soil granular dynamics on-a-chip: fluidization inception under scrutiny. LAB ON A CHIP 2019; 19:1226-1235. [PMID: 30806644 DOI: 10.1039/c8lc01376d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Predicting soil evolution remains a scientific challenge. This process involves poorly understood aspects of disordered granular matter and dense suspension dynamics. This study presents a novel two-dimensional experiment on a small-scale chip structure; this allows the observation of the deformation at the particle scale of a large-grained sediment bed, under conditions where friction dominates over cohesive and thermal forces, and with an imposed fluid flow. Experiments are performed under conditions which span the particle resuspension criterion, and particle motion is detected and analyzed. The void size population and statistics of particle trajectories bring insight into the sediment dynamics near fluidization conditions. Specifically, particle rearrangement and net bed compaction are observed at flow rates significantly below the criterion for instability growth. Above a threshold flowrate, a channel forms and grows in the vertical direction; and eventually it crosses the entire bed. In the range of flow rates where channelization can occur, the coexistence of compacting and dilating bed scenarios is observed. The results of the study enhance our capacity for modeling of both slow dynamics and eventual rapid destabilization of sediment beds. Microfluidic channel soil-on-a-chip studies open avenues to new investigations including dissolution-precipitation, fine particle transport, or micro-organism swimming and population growth, which may depend on the mechanics of the porous medium itself.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morgane Houssais
- Levich Institute, City College of CUNY, 140th Street and Convent Avenue, New York, NY 10031, USA.
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