Aqueous Solution Interface Research Articles

An investigation of air/water interface in mixed aqueous solutions of KCl, NaCl, and DAH

An investigation of air/water interface in mixed aqueous solutions of KCl, NaCl, and DAH

Adsorption and competition investigation of phenolic compounds on the solid-liquid interface of three-dimensional foam-like graphene oxide

Phenolic contaminants existed widely in ecological environment. Due to the various structure and functional groups, the interaction behavior of phenolic organic compounds with adsorbent was complex and changeable. Therefore, the exploration of adsorption and competition about phenolic compounds on solid-liquid interface in aqueous solution is of great significance. Herein, through a simple sugar-blowing route and post-oxidation modification, a free-standing, large-scale nanoporous three-dimensional graphene oxide (3D GO) was achieved. The synthesized 3D GO possessed hierarchical interconnected porous structure and abundant active sites, which showed excellent removal performance for many phenolic compounds. The maximum adsorption capacity (qmax) was 135.6 mg/g, 191.3 mg/g, 237.7 mg/g, 398.6 mg/g, 420.9 mg/g and 585.8 mg/g for phenol, 2-chlorophenol (2-CP), 4-chlorophenol (4-CP), 2,4-dichlorophenol (DCP), bisphenol-A (BPA) and 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (TCP) at 25 °C respectively. The competitive adsorption between BPA and TCP on 3D GO was also explored. Batch adsorption experiments and characterization revealed that the outstanding performance benefited from various factors, including structural advantage, electrostatic interaction, π-π interaction, hydrophobic effect, hydrogen bond, the synergy of heteroatom and the new active sites of preferential adsorbed organics. The cost-effective and highly active 3D GO adsorbent showed great promising in environmental field, and supplied insight to understand the underlying behavior of phenolic compounds on the solid-liquid interface.

Investigation of the liquid-vapour interface of aqueous methylamine solutions by computer simulation methods

Molecular dynamics simulations of the liquid-vapour interface of water-methylamine mixtures of eight different compositions, including neat water, are performed on the canonical (N,V,T) ensemble at 280 K. The molecules constituting the first three individual molecular layers beneath the liquid surface are identified by the Identification of the Truly Interfacial Molecules (ITIM) method. The results indicate that methylamine molecules are strongly adsorbed in the first, and somewhat depleted in the second molecular layer, while the composition of the third layer agrees well with that of the bulk liquid phase. On the other hand, methylamine molecules do not show considerable self-association within the surface layer. The orientational preferences of the methylamine molecules at the liquid surface are clearly governed by the requirement of maximizing their hydrogen bonding interaction. As a consequence, methylamine molecules point by their apolar CH3 group straight to the vapour, while by the potential hydrogen bonding directions of the NH2 group flatly to the liquid phase. Further, within the surface layer, methylamine molecules stay, on average, noticeably farther from the bulk liquid phase than waters. Increasing methylamine mole fraction leads to the gradual breaking up of the lateral percolating H-bonding network of the surface molecules. Finally, methylamine molecules accelerate, while water molecules slow down the exchange of both species between the liquid surface and the bulk liquid phase. Further, methylamine molecules slow down the lateral diffusion of each other, and even prevent water molecules from showing noticeable lateral diffusion within the surface layer. The reason for this latter effect is that the mean residence time of the water molecules at the liquid surface becomes considerably shorter than the characteristic time of their lateral diffusion in the presence of methylamine.

Toward Unraveling the Puzzle of Sum Frequency Generation Spectra at Interface of Aqueous Methanol Solution: Effects of Concentration-Dependent Hyperpolarizability

The air/liquid interface of aqueous methanol solutions, one of the earliest benchmark liquid interfaces ever studied by surface-selective sum frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy (SFG-VS),...

Corrosion resistance of phytic acid / Ce (III) nanocomposite coating with superhydrophobicity on magnesium

By alternative immersion into the aqueous solutions of phytic acid (PA) and CeCl3 for n cycles, a nanocomposite coating coded as (PA/Ce)n was fabricated on the magnesium substrate. The Ce3+ ions were supposed to coordinate with the phosphate groups of the PA molecules and the (PA/Ce)n coatings adhered to the substrate firmly (5B according to the ASTM D 3359 method). Compared with the PA coating, the Ce3+ ions enhanced the corrosion resistance of the PA/Ce nanocomposite coating. To further improve the corrosion resistance, the (PA/Ce)n coatings were immersed into the ethanol solution of hexadecyltrimethoxysilane (HDMS) and followed by heating in air. The so-obtained sample coded as Mg-H2O-(PA/Ce)n-HDMS was superhydrophobic and possessed much better corrosion resistance as compared with the Mg-H2O-(PA/Ce)n sample due to the retained thin layer of air at the solid/water interface in the NaCl aqueous solution. For four cycles, the Mg-H2O-(PA/Ce)4-HDMS sample showed the most excellent superhydrophobicity with a contact angle of 167.3 ± 2.1° and a sliding angle of 2.7 ± 0.8° due to its hierarchical surface morphology. Moreover, for four cycles, the retained air was most durable and remained intact after immersion for 80 h; consequently, the corrosion resistance of the Mg-H2O-(PA/Ce)4-HDMS sample was found the best. In one word, the corrosion resistance of PA to the Mg substrate was improved by incorporating with Ce3+ ions and further modifying by HDMS molecules. The present study provided a new conversion coating by combining the synergistic anti-corrosion effect of PA, Ce3+ ions, and the surface superhydrophobicity.

Photodegradable coumarin-derived amphiphilic dendrons for DNA binding: Self-assembly and phototriggered disassembly in water and air-water interface.

In this article, we demonstrate the self-assembly and photoresponive behavior of a novel coumarin-based amphiphilic dendron in both aqueous solution and air-water interface. The dendritic structure, namely C-IG1, was composed of a lipophilic cholesterol and hydrophilic poly(amido amine) (PAMAM) dendron, and the amphiphilic counterpart is interconnected by a photolabile coumarin carbonate ester, enabling the photoinduced degradation of the amphiphiles in protic solvents via SN1-like mechanism. A Nile red solubilization fluorescence assay suggests a low critical aggregation concentration for the micelle formation of C-IG1 in aqueous solutions (3.9 × 10-5 M); the Langmuir analysis further indicates that C-IG1 possesses significant compressibility in air-water interface, eventually forming homogeneous monolayers with a final molecular area (A0) of 36 Å2. Notably, the micelles and Langmuir monolayer are quite stable until photo-triggered dissociation based on the photocleavage of C-IG1 amphiphile activated by 365-nm incident light. Moreover, the transition in interfacial morphology of the Langmuir monolayer during the assembly and photodegradation processes also can be visually analyzed by incorporating Nile red probes with in situ monitoring through fluorescence microscopy. The thin film deposited on a glass substrate by the Langmuir-Blodgett technique also shows a photoresponsive behavior based on the change in the contact angles of a water droplet on the surface upon light stimulation. The binding affinity of C-IG1 and cyclic DNA determined by the fluorescence quenching analysis of the coumarin reporter suggests a ground-state macromolecular complexation process occurring through polyvalent interactions between the pseudodendrimers and biomacromolecules. The ethidium bromide displacement assay further indicates thus dendriplex formation at low nitrogen-to-phosphorous value (N/P < 1) and confirms that the decomplexation accompanied by DNA release can be achieved through an active phototriggered route under spatiotemporal control.

Effect of liquid phase rheology and gas–liquid interface property on mass transfer characteristics in bubble columns

Gas–liquid mass transfer in non-Newtonian fluid systems is important in many chemical and biochemical processes. Having a good understanding of gas–liquid mass transfer contributes to achieving the optimization of design and the energy-efficient operation. The mass transfer performance in tap water and carboxyl methyl cellulose (CMC) aqueous solutions with different weight percentages (0.3wt%, 0.4wt%, 0.5wt% and 0.6wt%) were investigated experimentally. The CMC aqueous solution was shear-thinning non-Newtonian fluid. In this study the apparent viscosity of the solutions ranged from 0.01 to 0.1Pas. As expected, the liquid phase rheology had a great effect on the gas–liquid mass transfer performance. The volumetric mass transfer coefficients in CMC aqueous solutions were much smaller than those in tap water, and the value decreased from 3.04×10−3s−1 to 2.8×10−4s−1 with the increase of the weight percentage of CMC aqueous solutions. The mobility of the gas–liquid interface in tap water and CMC aqueous solutions was identified by the dimensionless diameter number. It was found that the mobile gas–liquid interface prevailed in tap water, while bubbles behaved as rigid particles in relatively high weight percentage of CMC aqueous solutions (0.5wt% and 0.6wt%). The liquid film mass transfer coefficient could be approximated by theories for mobile and immobile gas–liquid interfaces in tap water and CMC aqueous solutions, respectively. Based on the liquid phase rheology and the mobility of the gas–liquid interface, the dimensionless correlations were proposed to describe the mass transfer process in Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids.

Surfactant-assisted-water-exposed versus surfactant-aqueous-solution-exposed electrospinning of novel super hydrophilic polycaprolactone based fibers: Analysis of drug release behavior.

Surface hydrophilicity and scaffold integrity determine the drug release behavior of drug loaded electrospun fibrous mats. When mixture miscibility is acceptable, blend electrospinning of hydrophobic with hydrophilic polymers can improve scaffold hydrophilicity while the hydrophobic polymer maintains the mechanical strength of scaffold. Polycaprolactone (PCL) and Pluronic P123 (P123) blend electrospinning has been investigated. In routine blend electrospinning, surface enrichment of Pluronic sets a limit for P123 weight ratio in which exceeding from that limit causes the excess P123 to be accumulated within the electrospun fiber core. To overcome this setback, a method named surfactant assisted water exposed (SAWE) electrospinning was introduced which was proven to be effective for increasing the surface enrichment of Pluronic. In order to test the validity of this method, the electrospinning of solution containing PCL which is exposed to aqueous solution of P123 was investigated. This new method was named surfactant aqueous solution exposed (SASE) electrospinning. Myelin formation at the contact interface of aqueous solution and chloroform solution was studied and it was found that this layer can effectively barricade the migration of Pluronic chains between immiscible phases. For SASE, fiber surface coverage by P123 was uneven and loose. Electrospun scaffolds from SAWE and SASE were loaded with drug to investigate the effect of the exposure time during electrospinning on in vitro drug release. By increasing the exposure time, the abnormal two-stage phased release profile of SAWE became normal with moderate initial burst. Longer exposure time increased the initial burst of the drug loaded SASE fibers. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 107A: 597-609, 2019.

Effect of ZnO nanosizing on its solubility in aqueous media

Zinc pollution represents a great environmental risk, particularly with regards to the aquatic environment. In this theoretical contribution, the enhanced solubility of ZnO nanoparticles in pure water is predicted based on a simple thermodynamic model. The study used Zn2+, Zn(OH)+, Zn(OH)2, Zn(OH)3 − and Zn(OH)4 2− as dominant species in aqueous solution and a Gibbs energy minimisation method to calculate equilibrium Zn content in this solution. ZnO was investigated in the form of nanoparticles of various shapes, whose very high surface-to-volume ratio implicates their lower thermodynamic stability compared with bulk material. The interfacial energy of the solid ZnO – dilute aqueous solution interface was assessed by applying the average ZnO surface energy and contact angle of a sessile drop of water on ZnO()-O surface. At 298 K, the ratio of 2 nm spherical ZnO particles to the bulk material solubility was about 23.7. The calculated results were compared with experimental data and yielded a good agreement. These results are not only of great importance for nanomaterials research but they also have implications for environmental protection.

Molecular Dynamics Simulations for the Co‐Adsorption of Binary Electrolytes at the Interface of Montmorillonite and Aqueous Solutions

Core Ideas Adsorption behaviors for different binary electrolytes at clay surfaces are presented. Major rather than minor adsorption modes are always more affected by co‐ions. Degrees of altering the adsorption numbers and strengths rely strongly on co‐ions. When alone and co‐existent, adsorption modes of metal ions remain consistent. Each binary system has peculiarities during adsorption as discussed in the text. Multiple electrolytes exist in almost all soil systems, and in this work, molecular dynamics was employed to tackle the adsorption of different binary electrolytes (PbCl2/CdCl2, PbCl2/NaCl, PbCl2/CsCl and KCl/CsCl) at montmorillonite–water interfaces, providing insights to the mechanisms of co‐adsorption and the impacts of co‐ions. In all cases, the adsorption modes of metal ions are not altered by co‐ions, while co‐ions exhibit the pronounced impacts on the adsorption numbers and strengths, and the main rather than minor adsorption modes are always more affected. In addition to these general principles, each type of binary systems has the peculiarities: Coexistence promotes Pb2+ adsorption while inhibits Cd2+ adsorption; Coexistence inhibits Pb2+ adsorption while promotes Cs+ adsorption; Coexistence promotes each other's adsorption of Pb2+ and Na+; Coexistence promotes Cs+ adsorption while inhibits K+ adsorption; All co‐ions improve Pb2+ stabilities, while coexistence of Pb2+ reduces Cd2+ stabilities and improves Cs+ and Na+ stabilities; Competition for inner‐sphere binding sites is not beneficial for the stabilities of both K+ and Cs+. Heavy and radioactive metal ions are a focus of this study and results are also helpful to manage their pollutions.

Influence of Interfacial Properties on the Capacitive Deionization Performance of TiO2 Thin-Film

Naturally, the solid liquid interface interaction widely exists. The study of electrode and aqueous solution interface is significant to the application of capacitive deionization as the principal reaction takes place at the interface. This paper focuses on the pure oxide thin-film, TiO2, in an aqueous solution concerning the response to solution chemistry including protons and specific adsorbing ions, phosphate for instance. Through the measurement of zeta potential and open circuit potential, the mechanism that the interfacial properties can be influenced by solution chemistry is illustrated. With the results of capacitance at different state of solution chemistry, the relationship between the interfacial properties, especially the surface potential, and the capacitance is obtained. The electrochemical capacitance is related to the surface potential of TiO2 porous thin-film and can be changed with the addition of protons and specific adsorbing ions. The capacitance increases away from isoelectric point in absence of phosphate, and phosphate addition displays an optimal effect over the neutral range of pH from 5 to 9, where many oxides are highly stable with quite low dissolution. Based on the results above, capacitive deionization system with phosphate modified TiO2 porous thin-film is designed, which possesses better deionization performance compared to the one without specific adsorption. It is believed that these TiO2 porous thin-film could be used as electrodes or coatings for electrodes due to their high surface area, good wettability of the pore walls and controllable surface potential. Further study of the interface is important in the development of capacitive deionization.

Effects of different surfactants and physical properties on the coalescence of dimethyl disulfide drops with mother phase at the interface of sodium hydroxide aqueous solutions

This study is concerned on the coalescence behavior of dimethyl disulfide drops and its mother-phase at the planar interface of sodium hydroxide aqueous solutions. This phenomenon is an essential part of the well-known Merox process. Three surfactant types of non-ionic Tween 20, anionic sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and cationic cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) were used to examine the effect of surfactants on the coalescence process. Critical micelle concentrations (CMC) of the surfactants in caustic solutions were obtained by the interfacial tension measurement. The drop coalescence times were measured using a high-speed digital camera. It was found that Tween 20 was the most effective surfactant in the reduction of interfacial tension for which the coalescence time was reduced by 85.2% under its CMC of 75.4 mg/L. The results also revealed that increase in the concentration of surfactants promoted the interface deformation. Furthermore, the effects of physical properties of the phases on the coalescence time were studied. Accordingly, a correlation was proposed based on the obtained data in which effective parameters and physical properties were involved with a maximum deviation of 15.1% and an average deviation of 7.8%. The results were compared with the so far reported correlations for coalescence times.

Interaction of Freshwater Diatom with Gold Nanoparticles: Adsorption, Assimilation, and Stabilization by Cell Exometabolites

The rising concern about the potential toxicity of synthetic gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in aquatic environments requires a rigorous estimation of physico-chemical parameters of reactions between AuNPs and major freshwater microorganisms. This study addresses the interaction of 10-nm size, positively charged AuNPs with periphytic freshwater diatoms (Eolimna minima). The adsorption experiments on viable cells were performed in 10 mM NaCl and 5 mM NaCl + 5 mM NaHCO3 solution at a variable pH (3–10), at an AuNPs concentration from 1 µg/L to 10,000 µg/L, and an exposure time from a few minutes to 55 days. Three types of experiments, adsorption as a function of time (kinetics), pH-dependent adsorption edge, and constant-pH “Langmuirian” type isotherms, were conducted. In addition, long-term interactions (days to weeks) of live diatoms (under light and in the darkness) were performed. The adsorption was maximal at a pH from 3 to 6 and sizably decreased at a pH of 6 to 10. Results of adsorption experiments were modeled using a second order kinetic model, a Linear Programming Model, Freundlich isotherm, and a ligand binding equation for one site competition. The adsorption of AuNPs(+) most likely occurred on negatively-charged surface sites of diatom cell walls such as carboxylates or phosphorylates, similar to previously studied metal cations. Under light exposure, the AuNPs were stabilized in aqueous solution in the presence of live cells, probably due to the production of exometabolites by diatoms. The adsorbed amount of AuNPs decreased after several days of reaction, suggesting some AuNPs desorption. In the darkness, the adsorption and assimilation were stronger than under light. Overall, the behavior of positively charged AuNPs at the diatom–aqueous solution interface is similar to that of metal cations, but the affinity of aqueous AuNPs to cell exometabolites is higher, which leads to the stabilization of nanoparticles in solution in the presence of diatoms and their exudates. During photosynthetic activity and the pH rising above 9 in the vicinity of diatom cells, the adsorption of AuNPs strongly decreases, which indicates a decreasing potential toxicity of AuNPs for photosynthesizing cells. The present study demonstrates the efficiency of a thermodynamic and kinetic approach for understanding gold nanoparticles interaction with aquatic freshwater peryphytic microorganisms.

A Quantitative Model for the Coupled Kinetics of Arsenic Adsorption/Desorption and Oxidation on Manganese Oxides

The ability to predict coupled kinetic reactions of arsenic (As) that occur at the manganese oxide–aqueous solution interface is crucial for management and remediation of As-contaminated sites worldwide. A quantitative understanding of the coupling between As oxidation and adsorption/desorption kinetics will enable us to more accurately predict the kinetic behavior of As. In this study, we developed a novel quantitative model for the coupled kinetics of As adsorption/desorption/oxidation on δ-MnO2. The kinetics of As(III) adsorption and oxidation on δ-MnO2 was studied using a stirred-flow method under varying influent As(III) concentrations. The model was able to account for the variations in As concentration, different binding behavior of As(III) and As(V), and flow rates. Our model quantitatively shows that the coupled As adsorption/desorption/oxidation processes are highly dependent on As mass loading rates on δ-MnO2. Our model suggests that the As(III) adsorption rate is much higher than its oxidation...

Fresh Molecular Look at Calcite–Brine Nanoconfined Interfaces

Calcite–fluid interface plays a central role in geochemical, synthetic, and biological crystal growth. The ionic nature of the calcite surface can modify the fluid–solid interaction and the fluid properties under spatial confinement and can also influence the adsorption of chemical species. We investigate the structure of the solvent and ions (Na, Cl, and Ca) at the calcite–aqueous solution interface under confinement and how such environment modifies the properties of water. To properly investigate the system, molecular dynamics simulations were employed to analyze the hydrogen bond network and to calculate NMR relaxation times. Here, we provide a new insight with additional atomistically detailed analysis by relating the topology of the hydrogen bond network with the dynamical properties in nanoconfinement interfaces. We have shown that the strong geometrical constraints and the presence of ions do influence the hydrogen bond network, resulting in more extended geodesic paths. Hydrogen bond branches con...

Reversal of Cation-Specific Effects at the Interface of Mica and Aqueous Solutions

Ion-specific effects are ubiquitous and have gained renaissance over the past few decades while remaining largely elusive. In this work, molecular dynamics simulations have been conducted to investigate the adsorption of different metal ions at the interface of mica and aqueous solutions, and cation-specific effects abide by the sequences of Na+ > K+ > Cs+ and Cs+ > K+ > Na+ for less and more charged surfaces, respectively. Mechanisms for cation-specific effects and reversal of Hofmeister series are then addressed on an atomic level. Hydration effect (i.e., interaction of metal ions with water) is the driving force for less charged surfaces, whereas interaction of metal ions with mica plays a larger role for more charged surfaces, which further result in a reversal of Hofmeister series. Clay minerals generally carry an abundance of negative charges, and the finding that Hofmeister series can be reversed with no change in the sign of surface charges provides new insights about related processes and ion-spe...

Molecular species forming at the α-Fe2O3 nanoparticle-aqueous solution interface.

We report on electronic structure measurements of the interface between hematite nanoparticles (6 nm diameter) and aqueous solutions. Using soft X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy from a liquid microjet we detect valence and core-level photoelectrons as well as Auger electrons from liquid water, from the nanoparticle-water interface, and from the interior of the aqueous-phase nanoparticles. Most noteworthy, the method is shown to be sufficiently sensitive for the detection of adsorbed hydroxyl species, resulting from H2O dissociation at the nanoparticle surface in aqueous solution. We obtain signal from surface OH from resonant, non-resonant, and from so-called partial-electron-yield X-ray absorption (PEY-XA) spectra. In addition, we report resonant photoelectron measurements at the iron 2p excitation. The respective Fe iron 2p3/2 edge (L3-edge) PEY-XA spectra exhibit two main absorption peaks with their energies being sensitive to the chemical environment of the Fe3+ ions at the nanoparticle-solution interface. This manifests in the 10Dq value which is a measure of the ligand-field strength. Furthermore, an observed intensity variation of the pre-peak, when comparing the PEY-XA spectra for different iron Auger-decay channels, can be assigned to different extents of electron delocalization. From the experimental fraction of local versus non-local autoionization signals we then find a very fast, approximately 1 fs, charge transfer time from interfacial Fe3+ into the environment. The present study, which is complementary to ambient-pressure photoemission studies on solid-electrolyte systems, also highlights the multiple aspects of photoemission that need to be explored for a full characterization of the transition-metal-oxide nanoparticle surface in aqueous phase.

Experimental and modeling study of the surface tension and interface of aqueous solutions of alcohols, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and their mixtures

In this study, the experimental surface tensions were measured for aqueous solutions of cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide, 1-propanol, 2-propanol, and 1-butanol with a pendant drop apparatus. The temperature and pressure of all experiments were 298.15K and 1bar, respectively. Subsequently, a model based on the equality of the chemical potential of components at the interface and the bulk liquid was used. The results of this part showed that the surface tensions were reproduced well. The average absolute deviation percent of surface tension was 1.11. Then the surface tensions of (cetyltrimethylammonium bromide+alcohols) aqueous mixtures were measured at different concentrations. Moreover, the critical micelle concentrations of the applied systems were determined. The present model was used for aqueous mixtures of (cetyltrimethylammonium bromide+alcohols). The average absolute deviation percent of surface tension was 2.72, so the model successfully predicted the surface tension for aqueous solutions of (cetyltrimethylammonium bromide+alcohols). Furthermore, the results of the model proved that the presence of alcohols decreased the surface coverage of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide and increased the values of the critical micelle concentration.

Self-Limiting Adsorption of WO3 Oligomers on Oxide Substrates in Solution.

Electrochemical surface science of oxides is an emerging field with expected high impact in developing, for instance, rationally designed catalysts. The aim in such catalysts is to replace noble metals by earth-abundant elements, yet without sacrificing activity. Gaining an atomic-level understanding of such systems hinges on the use of experimental surface characterization techniques such as scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), in which tungsten tips have been the most widely used probes, both in vacuum and under electrochemical conditions. Here, we present an in situ STM study with atomic resolution that shows how tungsten(VI) oxide, spontaneously generated at a W STM tip, forms 1D adsorbates on oxide substrates. By comparing the behavior of rutile TiO2(110) and magnetite Fe3O4(001) in aqueous solution, we hypothesize that, below the point of zero charge of the oxide substrate, electrostatics causes water-soluble WO3 to efficiently adsorb and form linear chains in a self-limiting manner up to submonolayer coverage. The 1D oligomers can be manipulated and nanopatterned in situ with a scanning probe tip. As WO3 spontaneously forms under all conditions of potential and pH at the tungsten–aqueous solution interface, this phenomenon also identifies an important caveat regarding the usability of tungsten tips in electrochemical surface science of oxides and other highly adsorptive materials.

Large-area release and transfer of ultrathin, freestanding nanocrystalline ceria films

Methods for fully releasing ultrathin ceria films onto an aqueous solution interface, and transferring the film onto arbitrary substrates are presented. The area of the released and transferred film is virtually unlimited, and the release procedure completely avoids etching steps which can be slow and contaminating. Transfer of the ceria film from one substrate to another substrate takes <10min. Furthermore, the procedure is most-likely applicable to a wide array of sample configurations. The possibility of applying the procedure to other materials and film dimensions is discussed. This method will be extremely useful for research and development of thin oxide films and membranes, and has potential for larger scale production.