Current applications of Colloidal Liquid Aphrons: Predispersed solvent extraction, enzyme immobilization and drug delivery

Abstract

Colloidal Liquid Aphrons (CLAs) are micron sized discrete spherical solvent droplets formed by the dispersion of polyaphrons into a bulk aqueous phase at a low phase volume ratio where they can be kept homogenously suspended with only minimal agitation. CLAs have high stability due to the presence of a surfactant ‘shell’ surrounding the solvent core, and possess large surface areas per unit volume for mass transfer due to their small size. Therefore, CLAs are well suited for applications in pre-dispersed solvent extraction (PSE), enzyme immobilization, and have the potential to be used as a drug delivery system. Using PSE, CLAs have been used to remove metals such as Ni2+, Cu2+, Fe3+, Cr3+ and Mg2+ from dilute streams, separate organic dyes such as Yellow 1 from wastewater, extract succinic and lactic acid, reactively extract phenylalanine, and separate suspensions. CLAs have also been used to immobilize enzymes such as lipase, lysozyme and albumins with cases of superactivity being reported due to the influence of surfactant and solvent interactions with the enzyme. Furthermore, due to their similarity to current drug delivery systems such as microemulsions and hydrogels, and other advantages, CLA systems have the potential to be adapted for drug delivery systems also. This article provides a complete list of the current applications of Colloidal Liquid Aphrons (CLAs) in PSE and enzyme immobilization, and also presents insight into how CLAs can be utilized as a drug delivery method in the future. Finally, this review ends by summarizing potentially interesting research areas to pursue in this field.