Measurements of Submicron Particle Adsorption and Particle Film Elasticity at Oil-Water Interfaces.

The influence of particle adsorption on liquid/liquid interfacial tension is not well understood, and much previous research has suggested conflicting behaviors. In this paper we investigate the surface activity and adsorption kinetics of charge stabilized and pH-responsive polymer stabilized colloids at oil/water interfaces using two tensiometry techniques: (i) pendant drop and (ii) microtensiometer. We found, using both techniques, that charge stabilized particles had little or no influence on the (dynamic) interfacial tension, although dense silica particles affected the "apparent" measured tension in the pendent drop, due to gravity driven elongation of the droplet profile.

Coalescence behavior of oil droplets coated in irreversibly-adsorbed surfactant layers.

Coalescence between oil caps with irreversibly adsorbed layers of nonionic surfactant is characterized in deionized water and electrolyte solution. The coalescence is characterized using a modified capillary tensiometer allowing for accurate measurement of the coalescence time. Results suggest two types of coalescence behavior, fast coalescence at low surface coverages that are independent of ionic strength and slow coalescence at high coverage.

Interfacial tension dynamics, interfacial mechanics, and response to rapid dilution of bulk surfactant of a model oil-water-dispersant system.

In the 2010 Deepwater Horizon rig explosion and subsequent oil spill, five million barrels of oil were released into the Gulf over the course of several months. Part of the resulting emergency response was the unprecedented use of nearly two million gallons of surfactant dispersant at both the sea surface and well head, giving rise to previously untested conditions of high temperature gradients, high pressures, and flow conditions. To better understand the complex interfacial transport mechanisms that this dispersant poses, we develop a model surfactant-oil-aqueous system of Tween 80 (a primary component in the Corexit dispersant used in the Gulf), squalane, and both simulated seawater as well as deionized water.