Oil-water Interface Research Articles

Revealing the microscopic formation mechanism and stability characteristics of anionic surfactant microemulsions using coarse-grained simulations

Microemulsion is thermodynamically stable dispersion system formed by emulsifiers such as surfactants adsorbed at the oil-water interface. However, the evolution mechanism of surfactant-stabilized microemulsions and its stability are not adequately understood. Motivated by these issues, the underlying formation mechanism and the complex interplay on the microemulsion stability were systematically investigated by dissipative particle dynamics simulations. Coarse-grained models of oil/water/surfactants were developed to demonstrate a clear Ostwald ripening mechanism for W/O microemulsion, whereas a collisional fusion mechanism for O/W microemulsion. Mutual transformation between O/W and W/O microemulsions was dominated by the change of interfacial water/oil area. As the surfactant concentration increased, smaller microemulsion formed with a higher stability. Compared to sodium lauryl sulfonate, sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate with benzene structure could form a thicker interfacial film, thereby improving the microemulsion stability. Internal olefin sulfonate with a branched structure was able to form an interfacial film with greater strength, enduring a higher shear rate of 0.033/ps. Furthermore, longer molecular chains of surfactant could result in a stronger steric effect, leading to a higher salinity tolerance of microemulsion with aHH is 17. The obtained results are expected to provide a solid theoretical foundation for the rational design of efficient microemulsions and pave the way for the applications such as oil recovery, pollution control, and dispersion of drugs.

Aggregate Size Modulates the Oil/Water Interfacial Behavior of Myofibrillar Proteins: Toward the Thicker Interface Film and Disulfide Bond.

Myofibrillar protein (MP) aggregate models have been established to elucidate the correlation between their aggregate sizes and interfacial properties. The interfacial layer thickness was measured by the polystyrene latex method and quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation measurement. Interfacial conformations were then characterized in situ (front-surface fluorescence spectroscopy) and ex situ (reactive sulfhydryl group and secondary structure measurement following MP displacement). The viscoelasticity of the interfacial film and its resistance to surfactant-induced competitive displacement were reflected by the dilatational rheology and dynamic interfacial tension with the bulk phase exchange. Finally, we compared the findings of competitive displacement before/after adding a sulfhydryl-blocking agent, N-ethylmaleimide, to highlight the role of S-S linkage on interfacial film formation and stability. We substantiated that the aggregate size of the MP governed their interfacial properties. Small-sized aggregates exhibited more ordered secondary structures on the oil-water interface, which was conducive to the adsorption ratio of the protein and the adsorption dynamics. Although larger aggregates lowered the diffusion rate during interfacial film formation, they allowed the thicker and more viscoelastic interfacial film to be constructed afterward through more disulfide bond formation, resulting in greater resistance to surfactant-induced competitive displacement.

Study on low-heat synergistic chemical profile control and flooding technology in Bohai Oilfield

Introduction: Through the combination of hot water and chemical agent, the low-heat synergistic chemical profile control and flooding technology can not only reduce the risks of sand production and string damage caused by high-temperature thermal recovery technology, but also further improve the recovery factor on the basis of hot water flooding.Methods: Based on laboratory testing, the synergism mechanism of thermal energy and chemical agent is studied.Results: The research results showed that in the near wellbore zone of the injection well, crude oil viscosity reduction mainly relies on thermal energy, and chemical agents assist in improving the water oil mobility ratio and reducing the risk of cross flow. After entering the deep formation, due to the decrease in temperature, the thermal energy effect is weakened, but the chemical agents still aggregate at the oil-water interface and continue to act on heavy oil to reduce viscosity. The higher the temperature, the greater the role of heat energy, and the weaker the role of chemical agents. The higher the injection concentration of chemical agent, the more obvious the leading role of chemistry. Based on the comprehensive evaluation index, the optimized temperature is 80°C and the injection concentration is 1500 mg/L. The scheme study of Bohai L Oilfield shows that compared with cold water flooding, hot water flooding can only improve oil recovery by 1.2 percentage points, and low heat collaborative chemical profile control flooding technology can further improve oil recovery by 4.7 percentage points on the basis of hot water flooding, with obvious oil increase effect.Conclusion: It is suggested that Bohai L Oilfield should apply low-heat coordinated chemical profile control and flooding technology to improve the development effect of the oilfield, and provide new technical ideas for safe and economic development of offshore heavy oil.

A clean label O/W pickering emulsion stabilized by pectin-containing lignocellulosic nanofibrils isolated from apple pomace

With the increasing demand for clean-label food, LCNF is considered a promising candidate to replace artificial surfactants in O/W emulsion. However, the isolation of LCNF usually requires the use of costly and toxic oxidants or grafting reagents to introduce charged groups for higher fibrillation degree and better emulsifying properties. In this study, a new pectin-containing apple nanofibril (A-NF) with native dissociated carboxyl groups (-COO-) was successfully produced from apple pomace by alkaline demethylation followed by high-pressure homogenization. These “native” charged A-NFs are 10–30 nm in diameter and ∼1 μm in length, and can be well dispersed in water for several months due to the release of up to 1.30 mmol/g nanofibrils of -COO- from the insoluble pectin (ISP) fraction by alkaline demethylation. Among A-NFs, A–NF–24h showed the best emulsifying properties (70.85 m2/g of EAI and 94.71% of ESI) and highest emulsion stability (∼1.00 μm of the oil droplet size during 14-day storage). Emulsion microstructure showed that LCNF not only irreversibly adsorbed at the oil-water interface, providing electrostatic stability, but also offered depletion stability by fabricating an entangled network with the unabsorbed portion. Moreover, molecular dynamics simulations further explained that the A-NF system displayed lower absorption energy of −1659.43 kJ/mol and diffusion cofactor of oil molecules of 16.67 μm2/s than that of CNF system at the interface, thus enhancing the emulsion stability. Altogether, these native A-NFs exhibit good colloidal stability, comparable emulsifying properties and emulsion stability, and have promising applications in clean-label O/W emulsions.

Demulsification efficiency and mechanism of hydrophobic carbon chains modified hyperbranched polyethylenimide on oil-in-water emulsion

A series of amphiphilic hyperbranched polyethylenimine (HPEI-Cn) with different length hydrophobic carbon chains were synthesized by amidation modification of hyperbranched polyethylenimine (HPEI), which can be used for separation of oil-in-water emulsion. The demulsification effect of HPEI-Cn under different demulsifier concentration, temperature, settling time and pH value were evaluated by bottle test method. The results indicated that the demulsification efficiency (DE) of HPEI-Cn increased with the increase of graft length of carbon chain. Encouragingly, the HPEI-C16 had the characteristics of small amount (50 mg/L), short settling time (30 min) and wide temperature adaptation range (20–60 °C). Through three-phase contact angle tests (CA), dynamic interfacial tension tests (IFT), elastic modulus analysis, Zeta potential and microscope observation, the demulsification mechanism of HPEI-Cn was systematically revealed. The excellent DE of HPEI-C16 was attributed to the high interfacial activity and appropriate length of hydrophobic groups. On the one hand, the high interfacial activity drives hyperbranched macromolecules to rapidly diffuse and adsorb to the oil-water interface. On the other hand, it contains appropriate hydrophobic carbon chains C16 to flocculate and coalesce oil droplets, thus achieving efficient demulsification.

Co-adsorption and displacement behavior of phenolic acid derivatives at a β-lactoglobulin-stabilized oil–water interface and the interactions of both solutes

Interfacial proteins interact non-covalently or covalently with small molecule food ingredients present in emulsions such as partly interfacially-active phenolic acid derivatives (PCD). However, these interactions might influence the interfacial behavior of the proteins depending on pH value and chemical–structural properties of both interaction partners. The aim of this study was to analyze the impact of pH 6.0 or 9.0 and the chemical–structural properties of selected, closely related PCD on their co-adsorption and displacement behavior at β-lactoglobulin (β-Lg)-stabilized oil–water interfaces. Additionally, their interactions with the protein were characterized. At pH 6, hydrophilic monomeric PCD adsorbed predominantly at the interface and were dissolved primarily in the aqueous phase as being localized by fluorescence microscopy. Hydrophobic monomeric PCD were predominantly adsorbed at the interface or migrated into the oil phase, resulting in partial displacement of the interfacial protein due to conformational changes. For more polar PCD, a formation of hydrogen bonds with the interfacial protein was detected. Selectively consecutive washing steps enabled stepwise breakdown and quantification of the different non-covalent interactions. Electrostatic repulsion and steric hindrance inhibited polymeric PCD from adsorbing at the interface at pH 9, which was shown with pendant drop analysis. These PCD mainly interacted hydrophobically with the interfacial protein film. Less covalent adducts with the protein were found at pH 6 compared with pH 9. Additionally, PCD preferentially polymerized under alkaline conditions instead of reacting covalently with the protein, which was analyzed with mass spectrometry.

Effect of asphaltenes on growth behavior of methane hydrate film at the oil-water interface

Investigation of the effect of asphaltenes, the natural surfactant in crude oil, on the methane hydrate formation is crucial for flow assurance in deep-water oil and gas field. However, most of recent studies on hydrate growth mainly focused on the impact of artificial and commercial surfactants. Limited attention has been given to the effect of the important natural surfactants presented in crude oil on hydrate film growth, such as asphaltenes. In this study, the influences of dissolved asphaltenes on the properties of oil-water interface and the growth of methane hydrate film were investigated. The morphology of methane hydrate film on the water droplet in the oil phase with different asphaltene concentrations was in-situ visualized in a visual autoclave equipped with microscopic imaging, and the lateral growth rate of the methane hydrate film was measured. The results showed that the addition of asphaltenes could increase the hydrophobicity of the methane hydrate film, inhibit the growth of hydrate, and change the morphology of the hydrate film. The growth rate of the hydrate film was negatively correlated with the asphaltene concentration (0–200 ppm), but stabilized above 200 ppm. In addition, this inhibition effect on the lateral growth rate was negatively correlated with temperature.

Mixed Nanosphere Assemblies at a Liquid-Liquid Interface.

The in-plane packing of gold (Au), polystyrene (PS), and silica (SiO2) spherical nanoparticle (NP) mixtures at a water-oil interface is investigated in situ by UV-vis reflection spectroscopy. All NPs are functionalized with carboxylic acid such that they strongly interact with amine-functionalized ligands dissolved in an immiscible oil phase at the fluid interface. This interaction markedly increases the binding energy of these nanoparticle surfactants (NPSs). The separation distance between the Au NPSs and Au surface coverage are measured by the maximum plasmonic wavelength (λmax) and integrated intensities as the assemblies saturate for different concentrations of non-plasmonic (PS/SiO2) NPs. As the PS/SiO2 content increases, the time to reach intimate Au NP contact also increases, resulting from their hindered mobility. λmax changes within the first few minutes of adsorption due to weak attractive inter-NP forces. Additionally, a sharper peak in the reflection spectrum at NP saturation reveals tighter Au NP packing for assemblies with intermediate non-plasmonic NP content. Grazing incidence small angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) measurements confirm a decrease in Au NP domain size for mixtures with larger non-plasmonic NP content. The results demonstrate a simple means to probe interfacial phase separation behavior using in situ spectroscopy as interfacial structures densify into jammed, phase-separated NP films.

Effect of lipophilized gallic acid on the oxidative stability of omega-3 fatty acids rich soy and cow milk

The antioxidant and interfacial effects of gallate alkyl esters on the oxidative stability of fish oil-enriched cow milk (CM) and soymilk emulsions (SM) stored at 4 °C were evaluated. The peroxide value and volatile compounds were also measured to monitor the progress of lipid oxidation. Despite the higher amount of unsaturated fatty acids, the SM emulsion showed a considerable increase in the oxidative stability compared to CM emulsion. It was found that reducing chlorogenic acid content may contribute to the lipid oxidation of SM emulsions. Moreover, the results showed that the antioxidant efficiency of gallates had a positive correlation with their partitioning at the oil-water interface. Octyl gallate followed by propyl gallate with the same partition at the interface had the highest antioxidant effect in protecting SM and CM emulsions. In contrast, short and long-chain gallates showed a higher lipid oxidation due to the higher partitioning into the aqueous and oil phases.

Biotechnological Valorization of Cupuaçu By-Products: Solid-State Fermentation for Lipase Production by Yarrowia lipolytica

Lipases are enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of ester bonds of triacylglycerols at the oil–water interface, generating free fatty acids, glycerol, diacylglycerol, and monoacylglycerol, which can be produced from the fermentation of agro-industrial by-products rich in fatty acids, such as cupuaçu fat cake. In this study, Yarrowia lipolytica IMUFRJ50682 was used for lipase production from cupuaçu fat cake in solid-state fermentation (SSF) associated with soybean meal. The 2:1 ratio of cupuaçu fat cake/soybean meal increased the lipase activity of Y. lipolytica via SSF by approximately 30.3-fold compared to that in cupuaçu without supplementation. The optimal conditions for Y. lipolytica to produce lipase were obtained by supplementation with peptone, urea, and soybean oil (all at 1.5% w/v), reaching values of up to 70.6 U g−1. These results demonstrate that cupuaçu fat cake associated with soybean meal can be used for lipase production and adds value to cupuaçu by-products. Furthermore, the proper processing of by-products can contribute to improving the economic viability of the biotechnological processing industry and help prevent the accumulation of waste and environmental pollution.

Facile fabrication of ceramic-based highly permeable composite nanofiltration membranes by in-situ interfacial polymerization

The preparation of thin-film composite (TFC) membranes with both extraordinary permeance and excellent rejection performance are still a challenge due to the irreversible and rapid interfacial polymerization (IP). The high reactivity of amine monomers helps to form a defect-free membrane instantaneously during the IP process, but also ultimately leads to low water permeance. Here, a facile strategy was proposed to improve the performance of TFC membrane by conducting in-situ IP on the nanoporous ceramic membranes. First, it was confirmed that the hydrophilic ceramic membrane, which serves as an oil-water interface, can provide a uniform aqueous layer. The free-like interface is conductive to the formation of defect less polyamide layer even at ultra-low monomer concentrations and very short reaction times. Then, the performance of TFC membranes using ceramic membranes with different pore sizes as supports was systematically investigated. The result indicates that supports with smaller pore size and narrower distribution enable facilitate the formation of a thinner membrane. Moreover, the nanofiltration membrane exhibited ultra-high pure water permeances of 42.9 LMH/bar and a rejection of 93.4 % to Na2SO4, utilizing a ceramic membrane with a pore size of 10 nm as support under PIP of 0.025 wt% and reaction times of 10 s.

New Measurement Method of Oil-Water Two-Phase Flow with High Water Holdup and Low Rate by Phase State Regulation

Abstract Flow rate and holdup are two essential parameters to describe oil-water two-phase flow. The distribution of oil-water two-phase flow in the pipeline is very uneven, and there is a significant slippage between the phases. This makes it difficult to measure these two flow parameters. In this paper, a new measurement method of flow rate and holdup based on phase state regulation is proposed. The oil-water two-phase flow is adjusted to oil or water single-phase flow according to the time sequence by the phase state regulation, and the oil-water phase interface is measured with a conductance sensor. A wavelet transform based phase inflection point detection model is proposed to detect the oil-water phase change point. The experimental results show that the maximum measurement error of the flow rate of water is 3.73%, the maximum measurement error of the flow rate of oil is 3.68%, and the flow rate measurement repeatability is 0.0002. The accuracy of the measurement holdup is better than 3.23%, and the repeatability of the measurement holdup is 0.0003. The prototype designed based on this method has two advantages. One is that it is small in size, the other is that it does not depend on the accuracy of the sensor. Therefore, it can be widely used in oilfield ground measurement.

Kinetic Mechanism of Surfactant-Based Molecular Recognition: Selective Permeability across an Oil-Water Interface Regulated by Supramolecular Aggregates.

Lipids are known to play a vital role in the molecular organization of all cellular life. Molecular recognition is another fundamental biological process that is generally attributed to biological polymers, such as proteins and nucleic acids. However, there is evidence that aggregates of lipids and lipid-like molecules are also capable of selectively binding to or regulating the partitioning of other molecules. We previously demonstrated that a model two-phase octanol/water system can selectively partition Red 40 and Blue 1 dyes added to an aqueous phase, with the selectivity depending on the surfactant (e.g., cetyltrimethylammonium bromide) dissolved in the organic phase. Here, we elucidate the mechanism of molecular recognition in this system by using quantitative partitioning experiments and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Our results indicate that the selectivity for the red dye is thermodynamically favored at all surfactant concentrations, while selectivity for the blue dye is kinetically favored at high surfactant concentrations. The kinetic selectivity for the blue dye correlates with the presence of molecular aggregation at the oil-water interface. Coarse-grained MD simulations elucidate nanoscale supramolecular structures that can preferentially bind one small molecule rather than another at an interface, providing a selectively permeable barrier in the absence of proteins. The results suggest a new supramolecular mechanism for molecular recognition with potential applications in drug delivery, drug discovery, and biosensing.

β-Cyclodextrin based Pickering emulsions for α-tocopherol delivery: Antioxidation stability and bioaccessibility

β-Cyclodextrin (β-CD) Pickering emulsion and cinnamaldehyde/β-cyclodextrin (CIN/β-CD) Pickering emulsion were prepared and the influences of oxidation and digestion were investigated. CIN/β-CD composite was better dispersed at the oil–water interface than β-CD. Hydrophobic group of CIN anchored in the oil phase and Hydrophilic hydroxyl group of β-CD extended into the aqueous phase, which allowed CIN/β-CD composite to be oriented at the oil–water interface and formed a more stable oil–water interface layer. β-CD Pickering emulsion was more susceptible to oxidative deterioration than CIN/β-CD Pickering emulsion, its malondialdehyde (MDA) value was as high as 509.41 ± 9.37 nmol/L. Digestion experiment indicated that CIN/β-CD Pickering emulsion was released inner oil phase in the small intestine and free fatty acid (FFA) release rate was 44.32 ± 1.08%. Pharmacokinetic parameters manifested that α-tocopherol peak concentration (Cmax) was 64.32 ± 6.45 mg/L and the peak time (Tmax) appeared at 5 h after administration of CIN/β-CD Pickering emulsion.

Tunability of Pickering particle features of whey protein isolate via remodeling partial unfolding during ultrasonication-assisted complexation with chitosan/chitooligosaccharide

The potential of ultrasonication-driven molecular self-assembly of whey protein isolate (WPI) with chitosan (CS)/chitooligosaccharide (COS) to stabilize Pickering emulsions was examined, based on CS/COS ligands-induced partial unfolding in remodeling the Pickering particles features. Multi-spectral analysis suggested obvious changes in conformational structures of WPI due to interaction with CS/COS, with significantly higher unfolding degrees of WPI induced by COS. Non-covalent interactions were identified as the major forces for WPI-CS/COS conjugates. Ultrasonication enhanced electrostatic interaction between CS's -NH3 groups and WPI's -COO− groups which improved emulsification activity and storability of WPI-COS stabilized Pickering emulsion. This was attributed to increased surface hydrophobicity and decreased particle size compared to WPI-CS associated with differential unfolding degrees induced by different saccharide ligands. CLSM and SEM consistently observed smaller emulsion droplets in WPI-COS complexes than WPI-CS/COS particles tightly adsorbed at the oil-water interface. The electrostatic self-assembly of WPI with CS/COS greatly enhanced the encapsulation efficiency of quercetin than those stabilized by WPI alone and ultrasound further improved encapsulation efficiency. This corresponded well with the quantitative affinity parameters between quercetin and WPI-CS/COS complexes. This investigation revealed the great potential of glycan ligands-induced conformational transitions of extrinsic physical disruption in tuning Pickering particle features.

Preparation, characterization and stability of water-in-oil Pickering emulsions stabilized by acylated EGCG derivatives

Excessive intake of trans and saturated fatty acids from solid fats contributes to the development of chronic diseases. Food-grade water-in-oil (W/O) emulsions for the replacement of trans and saturated fat products, delivery of active compounds and microreactors remain to be further explored. Camellia oil-based W/O Pickering emulsions were prepared using acylated EGCG derivatives with various carbon chain lengths, including EGCG myristate (MYR-E), EGCG palmitate (PAL-E), and EGCG stearate (STEA-E). The acylated EGCG derivatives exhibited a contact angle of 90–100° with water droplets and could theoretically be used as Pickering emulsion stabilizers. The acylated EGCG derivatives were dissolved in the oil phase as needle-like crystals, which stabilized the emulsion against aggregation by adsorption at the oil-water interface. Pickering emulsions developed with STEA-E (PE-STEA) maintained higher stability after three freeze-thaw cycles, with a creaming index (CI) of 0% at oil-water volume ratios greater than 4:6. PE-STEA with varying oil-water volume ratios were stable at room temperature and 4 °C after long-time storage, with a maximum CI of only 1.39%. This study could provide new perspectives on the application of acylated EGCG derivatives and broaden the application of surfactant-free W/O Pickering emulsions in the food industry.

Plant protein and animal protein‐based Pickering emulsion: A review of preparation and modification methods

AbstractProtein‐based Pickering emulsions are gaining popularity due to their biocompatibility and alignment with people's pursuit of health. This review focuses on recent advances in the preparation of Pickering emulsions using various plant and animal proteins from different sources. For sustainability and cost reasons, plant proteins are preferred, while animal proteins provide better nutritional quality. According to the type of plant or animal protein, the suitable modification and preparation methods of stable Pickering emulsion are summarized, including heating, enzyme induction, anti‐solvent precipitation, pH‐cycling, glycosylation, microwave heating, spray drying, and high hydrostatic pressure. Different methods were employed to modify the properties of Pickering emulsion particles at the oil–water interface. To overcome the amphiphilicity limitations of some proteins, substances such as polysaccharides or polyphenols were combined to improve the physical and chemical properties of the particles. Additionally, this review analyzes the effect of different protein particle sources on the properties of Pickering emulsions.

Zein/hyaluronic acid nanoparticle stabilized Pickering emulsion for astaxanthin encapsulation

Pickering emulsions have attracted considerable attention owing to the stability and functionality. In this study, zein/hyaluronic acid (ZH) nanoparticles were prepared and applied for stabilizing astaxanthin encapsulated Pickering emulsions. By non-covalent interaction between Zein and hyaluronic acid (HA), the conformation of zein changed and therefore improved the wettability of ZH nanoparticles. Unlike the spherical zein nanoparticles, ZH nanoparticles possessed a cross-linked structure with rough surface. Confocal laser scanning microscopy indicated that the nanoparticles accumulated at the oil-water interface. The Pickering emulsion stabilized by ZH nanoparticles exhibited high viscoelasticity and a solid-like behavior, as well as excellent stability during the storage. In vitro digestion results revealed that the presence of HA coating prevented the emulsion from pepsin hydrolysis and achieved efficient delivery of astaxanthin. This work confirmed that Pickering emulsion stabilized by ZH nanoparticles could be used as an effective deliver system for bioactive substances.

The Phase Inversion Mechanism of the pH-Sensitive Reversible Invert Emulsion.

Reversible emulsification drilling fluids can achieve conversion between oil-based drilling fluids and water-based drilling fluids at different stages of drilling and completion, combining the advantages of both to achieve the desired drilling and completion effects. The foundation of reversible emulsion drilling fluids lies in reversible emulsions, and the core of a reversible emulsion is the reversible emulsifier. In this study, we prepared a reversible emulsifier, DMOB(N,N-dimethyl-N'-oleic acid-1,4-butanediamine), and investigated the reversible phase inversion process of reversible emulsions, including the changes in the reversible emulsifier (HLB) and its distribution at the oil-water interface (zeta potential). From the perspective of the acid-alkali response mechanism of reversible emulsifiers, we explored the reversible phase inversion mechanism of reversible emulsions and reversible emulsification drilling fluids. It was revealed that the reversible phase inversion of emulsions could be achieved by adjusting the pH of the emulsion system. Then the proportion of ionic surfactants changed in the oil-water interface and subsequently raised/lowered the HLB value of the composite emulsifier at the oil-water interface, leading to reversible phase inversion of the emulsion. The introduction of organic clays into reversible emulsification drilling fluid can affect the reversible conversion performance of the drilling fluids at the oil-water interface. Thus, we also investigated the influence of organic clays on reversible emulsions. It was demonstrated that a dosage of organic clay of ≤2.50 g/100 mL could maintain the reversible phase inversion performance of reversible emulsions. By analyzing the microstructure of the emulsion and the complex oil-water interface, we revealed the mechanism of the influence of organic clay on the reversible emulsion. Organic clay distributed at the oil-water interface not only formed a complex emulsifier with surfactants, but also affected the microstructure of the emulsion, resulting in a difficult acid-induced phase transition, an easy alkali-induced phase transition, and improved overall stability.

Fine-Tuning the Surface and Interfacial Chemistry of Silica Nanoparticles to Control Stability in High Ionic Strength Electrolytes and Modulate Assembly at Oil–Water Interfaces

Fine-Tuning the Surface and Interfacial Chemistry of Silica Nanoparticles to Control Stability in High Ionic Strength Electrolytes and Modulate Assembly at Oil–Water Interfaces