| EPSRC Reference: |
GR/R55450/01 |
| Title: |
STUDIES OF SURFACE EFFECTS ON PHASE CHANGES IN NANOSCALE PORES |
| Principal Investigator: |
Christenson, Professor H |
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| Department: |
Physics and Astronomy |
| Organisation: |
University of Leeds |
| Scheme: |
Fast Stream |
| Starts: |
01 October 2001 |
Ends: |
31 December 2004 |
Value (£): |
60,677
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Summary on Grant Application Form |
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A surface force apparatus will be used to study specific surface effects on the phase behaviour of substances confined in nanosize pores. A range of surface modification techniques will be used to coat muscovite mica with hydrocarbon and fluorocarbon chains. Such surfaces show differing degrees of wettability by water and many organic liquids, with contact angles between 0 and 120 degrees. The liquids will be allowed to adsorb from vapour at one isolated surface and condense in the narrow gap between two surfaces. Vapour adsorption isotherms at the isolated surfaces will be measured and the phase state of the condensate will be determined with optical interferometry. This technique permits transitions between solid, liquid and yapour states occurring in the gap between the surfaces to be studied as a function of gap width, condensate volume, temperature and wettability of the surface. The influence of surface wettability and the nature of the condensing substances on phenomena such as (i) the competition between the direct nucleation of solid from vapour and the formation of restricted liquid condensates, (ii) the melting-point depression in nanoscale pores and (iii) the occurrence of sublimation or freezing of liquid condensates as the temperature is lowered will be investigated for organic liquids and water. The results will be used to aid fundamental understanding of phase behaviour in porous media and in nanoscale systems.
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Key Findings |
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Potential use in non-academic contexts |
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Impacts |
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| Description |
This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk |
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Sectors submitted by the Researcher |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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| Project URL: |
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| Further Information: |
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| Organisation Website: |
http://www.leeds.ac.uk |