Calculation of Solid−Liquid Work of Adhesion Patterns from Combining Rules for Intermolecular Potentials

Abstract

The thermodynamic work of solid−liquid adhesion is a well-defined property. Their phenomenological patterns relating to surface tensions, however, have not been well-characterized. We employed a hard sphere model to determine the solid−liquid work of adhesion patterns from a mean-field theory through calculations of the liquid−vapor, solid−vapor, and solid−liquid interfacial tensions. By plotting the work of adhesion with the liquid−vapor interfacial tension, we constructed curves that appear to behave in a very regular manner for a variety of combining rules; the curves shift regularly when we increase the strength of solid−solid interaction and hence the solid−vapor surface tension. Contact angle patterns were also constructed via Young's equation. We found that, except Berthelot's rule, the (9:3), Steele, and (12:6) combining rules yield essentially similar adhesion patterns. The regularity of the patterns is remarkable and in reasonable agreement with recent experimental findings. We have shown that m...