Soil water repellency originating from organic coatings plays a crucial role for soil hydraulics and plant water uptake. Focussing on hydrophobicity in the rhizosphere induced by root-mucilage, this study aims to explore the link between macroscopic wettability and nano-microscopic surface properties. The existing knowledge of the nanostructures of organic soil compounds and its effect on wettability is limited by the lack of a method capable to assess the natural spatial heterogeneity of physical and chemical properties. In this contribution, this task is tackled by a geostatistical approach via variogram analysis of topography and adhesion force data acquired by atomic force microscopy and macroscopic sessile drop measurements on dried films of mucilage. The results are discussed following the wetting models given by Wenzel and Cassie-Baxter. Undiluted mucilage formed homogeneous films on the substrate with contact angles >90°. For diluted samples contact angles were smaller and incomplete mucilage surface coverage with hole-like structures frequently exhibited increased adhesion forces. Break-free distances of force curves indicated enhanced capillary forces due to adsorbed water films at atmospheric RH (35 ± 2%) that promote wettability. Variogram analysis enabled a description of complex surface structures exceeding the capability of comparative visual inspection.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2018.01.079 | DOI Listing |
iScience
January 2025
Laboratory of Functional Molecules and Materials, School of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Shandong University of Technology, 266 Xincun Xi road, Zibo 255000, P.R. China.
In recent years, photocatalytic materials with a nanofiber-like morphology have garnered a surge of academic attention due to their distinctive properties, including an expansive specific surface area, a considerable high aspect ratio, a pronounced resistance to agglomeration, superior electron survivability, and robust surface activity. Consequently, the synthesis of photocatalytic nanofiber materials through various methodologies has drawn considerable attention. The electrospinning technique has been established as a prevalent method for fabricating nanofiber-structured materials, owing to its advantageous properties, including the ability for mass production and the assurance of high continuity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFClin Cosmet Investig Dermatol
January 2025
Department of Basic Biomedical Science, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences in Sosnowiec, Medical University of Silesia in Katowice, Sosnowiec, Poland.
Purpose: The aim was to quantitatively evaluate the effectiveness of LED light therapy combined with photoacceptor substances having anti-acne properties in reducing the symptoms of acne vulgaris.
Patients And Methods: 15 subjects aged 20 to 24 who suffered from moderate or severe acne lesions. The treatments were performed using a LED device (465-880 nm).
Chem Sci
January 2025
School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Chemical Theory and Mechanism, Chongqing University Chongqing 401331 China
Atomically precise gold nanoclusters have shown great promise as model electrocatalysts in pivotal electrocatalytic processes such as the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and carbon dioxide reduction reaction (CORR). Although the influence of ligands on the electronic properties of these nanoclusters is well acknowledged, the ligand effects on their electrocatalytic performances have been rarely explored. Herein, using [Au(SR)] nanoclusters as a prototype model, we demonstrated the importance of ligand hydrophilicity hydrophobicity in modulating the interface dynamics and electrocatalytic performance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe increasing demand for sustainable food packaging has driven the development of films based on biopolymers. However, enhancing their functional properties remains a challenge. In the current study, potato starch-pectin (PSP) composite films were fabricated and enriched with juniper berry essential oil (JBEO) to improve their physicochemical properties.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Food Sci Technol
January 2025
Department of Food Engineering and Technology, School of Food Engineering, Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Monteiro Lobato 80, 6121, Campinas, SP 3083-862 Brazil.
Unlabelled: The effects of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) (400-650 MPa) and holding temperature (25-50 °C) in thermally assisted HHP processing on multi-scale structure of starch (granule, crystalline and molecular), techno-functional properties, and digestibility of sorghum starch (SS) were evaluated. Response surface methodology has verified that the process impact on the modification of SS was dependent primarily on the pressure level. As HHP increased, processed SS progressively lost their granular structure and Maltese cross, indicating gradual structural disorder within the granules.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!