scholarly journals Improving Colloidal Stability of Sepiolite Suspensions: Effect of the Mechanical Disperser and Chemical Dispersant

Minerals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 779 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luís Alves ◽  
Eduardo Ferraz ◽  
Julio Santarén ◽  
Maria G. Rasteiro ◽  
José A. F. Gamelas

To allow the use of fibrous-like clays, as sepiolite, in different applications, their disaggregation and the formation of stable suspensions are crucial steps to enhance their performance significantly, e.g., in cellulose nanofibrils/clay composite formulations, enabling an adequate mixture of the matrix and filler individual components. Three distinct physical treatments of dispersion (magnetic stirring, high-speed shearing, and ultrasonication) and four different chemical dispersants (polyacrylate, polyphosphate, carboxymethylcellulose, and alginate, all in the form of sodium salts) were tested to improve the dispersibility and the formation of stable suspensions of sepiolite. Two sepiolite samples from the same origin but with different pre-treatments were evaluated. The particle size and suspension stability were evaluated by dynamic light scattering, zeta potential measurements and optical microscopy. Additionally, the sepiolite samples were initially characterized for their mineralogical, chemical, and morphologic properties. Of the three physical dispersion treatments tested, the ultrasonicator typically produced more stable suspensions; on the other hand, the biopolymer carboxymethylcellulose showed a higher ability to produce stable suspensions, being, however, a smaller particle size obtained when polyphosphate was used. Remarkably, 47 out of 90 prepared suspensions of sepiolite stayed homogeneous for at least three months after their preparation. In sum, the combination of a high energy dispersing equipment with an appropriate dispersing agent led to stable suspensions with optimal properties to be used in different applications, like in the composite production.

Polymers ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 129
Author(s):  
Eduardo Ferraz ◽  
Luís Alves ◽  
Pedro Sanguino ◽  
Julio Santarén ◽  
Maria G. Rasteiro ◽  
...  

Palygorskite is a natural fibrous clay mineral that can be used in several applications, for which colloidal stability in aqueous suspensions is a key point to improve its performance. In this study, methods of magnetic stirring, high-speed shearing, and ultrasonication, as well as different chemical dispersants, combined with these methods, namely carboxymethylcellulose, alginate, polyphosphate, and polyacrylate, were used to improve the dispersibility and the formation of stable suspensions of palygorskite in different conditions of pH. The stability and particle size of suspensions with a low concentration of palygorskite were evaluated by visual inspection, optical and electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, and zeta potential measurements. Moreover, the palygorskite used in this work was initially characterized for its mineralogical, chemical, physical, and morphological properties. It was found that more stable suspensions were produced with ultrasonication compared to the other two physical treatments, with magnetic stirring being inefficient in all tested cases, and for higher pH values (pH of 12 and pH of 8, the natural pH of the clay) when compared to lower pH values (pH of 3). Remarkably, combined with ultrasonication, carboxymethylcellulose or in a lesser extent polyphosphate at near neutral pH allowed for the disaggregation of crystal bundles of palygorskite into individualized crystals. These results may be helpful to optimize the performance of palygorskite in several domains where it is applied.


Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 2216
Author(s):  
Jie Zhang ◽  
Gongwei Li ◽  
Duoxia Xu ◽  
Yanping Cao

Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) is a commonly used fortified calcium, but poor suspension stability and easy precipitation seriously limited its food processing and products application. The formation of CaCO3 loaded microparticles based on the form of solid/oil/water (S/O/W) emulsion is a promising method to improve the dispersion stability of CaCO3 in liquid food. In this study, CaCO3, soybean oil, and sodium caseinate (NaCas) were used as the solid, oil, and W phase, respectively. The fabrication involved two steps: the S/O emulsion was prepared by adding CaCO3 into soybean oil by magnetic stirring and high-speed shearing, and then put the S/O crude emulsion into NaCas solution (W phase) to obtain S/O/W emulsion by high-speed blender. The particle size distribution, zeta potential, stability of the microsphere, infrared spectral analysis, and XRD of the S/O/W calcium-lipid microsphere were explored. The stability and rheological mechanism of S/O/W calcium-lipid emulsion were investigated by combining the microstructure, shear rheological, and microrheological properties. It was found that the emulsion particles have more uniform particle size distribution and no aggregation, and the stability of the emulsion was improved with increasing the content of NaCas. The mean square displacement (MSD) curve and solid-liquid equilibrium (SLB) value of S/O/W emulsion increased with the increase in NaCas concentration, and the viscosity behavior is dominant. The results of confocal laser microscopy (CLSM) and cryo-scanning electron microscopy (Cryo-SEM) showed that the three-dimensional network structure of S/O/W emulsions was more compact, and the embedding effect of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) was slightly improved with the increase in NaCas concentration. According to infrared spectrum and XDR analysis, the addition of CaCO3 into the emulsion system caused crystal structure distortion. This study provides a reference for solving the dispersibility of insoluble calcium salt in liquid food.


Author(s):  
E.D. Wolf

Most microelectronics devices and circuits operate faster, consume less power, execute more functions and cost less per circuit function when the feature-sizes internal to the devices and circuits are made smaller. This is part of the stimulus for the Very High-Speed Integrated Circuits (VHSIC) program. There is also a need for smaller, more sensitive sensors in a wide range of disciplines that includes electrochemistry, neurophysiology and ultra-high pressure solid state research. There is often fundamental new science (and sometimes new technology) to be revealed (and used) when a basic parameter such as size is extended to new dimensions, as is evident at the two extremes of smallness and largeness, high energy particle physics and cosmology, respectively. However, there is also a very important intermediate domain of size that spans from the diameter of a small cluster of atoms up to near one micrometer which may also have just as profound effects on society as “big” physics.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 404-418
Author(s):  
Kruti Borderwala ◽  
Ganesh Swain ◽  
Namrata Mange ◽  
Jaimini Gandhi ◽  
Manisha Lalan ◽  
...  

Background: The objective of this study was to develop solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) of poorly water soluble anti-hyperlipidemic drugs-Ezetimibe in combination with Simvastatin. Methods: This study describes a 32 full factorial experimental design to optimize the formulation of drug loaded lipid nanoparticles (SLN) by the high speed homogenization technique. The independent variables amount of lipid (GMS) and amount of surfactant (Poloxamer 188) were studied at three levels and arranged in a 32 factorial design to study the influence on the response variables- particle size, % entrapment efficiency (%EE) and cumulative drug release (% CDR) at 24 h. Results: The particle size, % EE and % CDR at 24 h for the 9 batches (B1 to B9) showed a wide variation of 104.6-496.6 nm, 47.80-82.05% (Simvastatin); 48.60-84.23% (Ezetimibe) and 54.64-92.27% (Simvastatin); 43.8-97.1% (Ezetimibe), respectively. The responses of the design were analysed using Design Expert 10.0.2. (Stat-Ease, Inc, USA), and the analytical tools of software were used to draw response surface plots. From the statistical analysis of data, polynomial equations were generated. Optimized formulation showed particle size of 169.5 nm, % EE of 75.43% (Simvastatin); 79.10% (Ezetimibe) and 74.13% (Simvastatin); 77.11% (Ezetimibe) %CDR after 24 h. Thermal analysis of prepared solid lipid nanoparticles gave indication of solubilisation of drugs within lipid matrix. Conclusion: Fourier Transformation Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) showed the absence of new bands for loaded solid lipid nanoparticles indicating no interaction between drugs and lipid matrix and being only dissolved in it. Electron microscope of transmission techniques indicated sphere form of prepared solid lipid nanoparticles with smooth surface with size approximately around 100 nm.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1914
Author(s):  
Pingping Han ◽  
Honghui Li ◽  
Laurence J. Walsh ◽  
Sašo Ivanovski

Dental aerosol-generating procedures produce a large amount of splatters and aerosols that create a major concern for airborne disease transmission, such as COVID-19. This study established a method to visualise splatter and aerosol contamination by common dental instrumentation, namely ultrasonic scaling, air-water spray, high-speed and low-speed handpieces. Mock dental procedures were performed on a mannequin model, containing teeth in a typodont and a phantom head, using irrigation water containing fluorescein dye as a tracer. Filter papers were placed in 10 different locations to collect splatters and aerosols, at distances ranging from 20 to 120 cm from the source. All four types of dental equipment produced contamination from splatters and aerosols. At 120 cm away from the source, the high-speed handpiece generated the greatest amount and size (656 ± 551 μm) of splatter particles, while the triplex syringe generated the largest amount of aerosols (particle size: 1.73 ± 2.23 μm). Of note, the low-speed handpiece produced the least amount and size (260 ± 142 μm) of splatter particles and the least amount of aerosols (particle size: 4.47 ± 5.92 μm) at 120 cm. All four dental AGPs produce contamination from droplets and aerosols, with different patterns of distribution. This simple model provides a method to test various preventive strategies to reduce risks from splatter and aerosols.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenz T. Keyßer ◽  
Manfred Lenzen

Abstract1.5  °C scenarios reported by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) rely on combinations of controversial negative emissions and unprecedented technological change, while assuming continued growth in gross domestic product (GDP). Thus far, the integrated assessment modelling community and the IPCC have neglected to consider degrowth scenarios, where economic output declines due to stringent climate mitigation. Hence, their potential to avoid reliance on negative emissions and speculative rates of technological change remains unexplored. As a first step to address this gap, this paper compares 1.5  °C degrowth scenarios with IPCC archetype scenarios, using a simplified quantitative representation of the fuel-energy-emissions nexus. Here we find that the degrowth scenarios minimize many key risks for feasibility and sustainability compared to technology-driven pathways, such as the reliance on high energy-GDP decoupling, large-scale carbon dioxide removal and large-scale and high-speed renewable energy transformation. However, substantial challenges remain regarding political feasibility. Nevertheless, degrowth pathways should be thoroughly considered.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 4010
Author(s):  
Seon-Chil Kim

In the field of medical radiation shielding, there is an extensive body of research on process technologies for ecofriendly shielding materials that could replace lead. In particular, the particle size and arrangement of the shielding material when blended with a polymer material affect shielding performance. In this study, we observed how the particle size of the shielding material affects shielding performance. Performance and particle structure were observed for every shielding sheet, which were fabricated by mixing microparticles and nanoparticles with a polymer material using the same process. We observed that the smaller the particle size was, the higher both the clustering and shielding effects in the high-energy region. Thus, shielding performance can be improved. In the low-dose region, the effect of particle size on shielding performance was insignificant. Moreover, the shielding sheet in which nanoparticles and microsized particles were mixed showed similar performance to that of the shielding sheet containing only microsized particles. Findings indicate that, when fabricating a shielding sheet using a polymer material, the smaller the particles in the high-energy region are, the better the shielding performance is. However, in the low-energy region, the effect of the particles is insignificant.


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sangmo Kim ◽  
Thi My Huyen Nguyen ◽  
Rui He ◽  
Chung Wung Bark

AbstractPiezoelectric nanogenerators (PNGs) have been studied as renewable energy sources. PNGs consisting of organic piezoelectric materials such as poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) containing oxide complex powder have attracted much attention for their stretchable and high-performance energy conversion. In this study, we prepared a PNG combined with PVDF and lanthanum-modified bismuth titanate (Bi4−XLaXTi3O12, BLT) ceramics as representative ferroelectric materials. The inserted BLT powder was treated by high-speed ball milling and its particle size reduced to the nanoscale. We also investigated the effect of particle size on the energy-harvesting performance of PNG without polling. As a result, nano-sized powder has a much larger surface area than micro-sized powder and is uniformly distributed inside the PNG. Moreover, nano-sized powder-mixed PNG generated higher power energy (> 4 times) than the PNG inserted micro-sized powder.


Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 2284
Author(s):  
Miaomiao Qian ◽  
Bo Zou ◽  
Zhixiao Chen ◽  
Weimin Huang ◽  
Xiaofeng Wang ◽  
...  

Two factors, the crosslinking degree of the matrix (ν) and the size of the filler (Sz), have significant impact on the Mullins effect of filled elastomers. Herein, the result. of the two factors on Mullins effect is systematically investigated by adjusting the crosslinking degree of the matrix via adding maleic anhydride into a rubber matrix and controlling the particle size of the filler via ball milling. The dissipation ratios (the ratio of energy dissipation to input strain energy) of different filled natural rubber/butadiene rubber (NR/BR) elastomer composites are evaluated as a function of the maximum strain in cyclic loading (εm). The dissipation ratios show a linear relationship with the increase of εm within the test range, and they depend on the composite composition (ν and Sz). With the increase of ν, the dissipation ratios decrease with similar slope, and this is compared with the dissipation ratios increase which more steeply with the increase in Sz. This is further confirmed through a simulation that composites with larger particle size show a higher strain energy density when the strain level increases from 25% to 35%. The characteristic dependence of the dissipation ratios on ν and Sz is expected to reflect the Mullins effect with mathematical expression to improve engineering performance or prevent failure of rubber products.


2005 ◽  
Vol 473-474 ◽  
pp. 429-434 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olga Verezub ◽  
György Kaptay ◽  
Tomiharu Matsushita ◽  
Kusuhiro Mukai

Penetration of model solid particles (polymer, teflon, nylon, alumina) into transparent model liquids (distilled water and aqueous solutions of KI) were recorded by a high speed (500 frames per second) camera, while the particles were dropped from different heights vertically on the still surface of the liquids. In all cases a cavity has been found to form behind the solid particle, penetrating into the liquid. For each particle/liquid combination the critical dropping height has been measured, above which the particle was able to penetrate into the bulk liquid. Based on this, the critical impact particle velocity, and also the critical Weber number of penetration have been established. The critical Weber number of penetration was modelled as a function of the contact angle, particle size and the ratio of the density of solid particles to the density of the liquid.


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