title: Nanoparticle-stabilized carbon dioxide-in-water foams with fine texture.
abstract: The concept of hydrophilic/CO(2)-philic balance (HCB) was extended to describe stabilization of carbon dioxide-in-water (C/W) foams (also called emulsions) with silica nanoparticles adsorbed at the CO(2)-water interface. Opaque, white C/W foams (bubble diameter <100 μm) were generated with either PEG-coated silica or methylsilyl modified silica nanoparticles in a beadpack with CO(2) densities between 0.2 and 0.9 g mL(-1). For methylsilyl modified silica nanoparticles, 50% SiOH modification provided an optimal HCB for generation and stabilization of viscous C/W foams with high stability. The apparent viscosity measured with a capillary tube viscometer reached 120-fold that of a CO(2)-water mixture without nanoparticles, a consequence of the small bubble size and the energy required to deform a high density of aqueous lamellae between CO(2) bubbles. Air-in-water (A/W) foams stabilized with nanoparticles were used to gain insight into the relationship between nanoparticle surface properties and adsorption of the nanoparticles at various types of interfaces. With suitable nanoparticles, A/W foams were stable for at least 7 days and C/W foams were stable for at least 23 h. The ability to achieve long term stability for nanoparticle stabilized C/W foams could offer an alternative to conventional surfactants, which are known to have much lower adsorption energies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, United States.
authors.forename: Andrew J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Worthen
authors.forename: Hitesh G
authors.initials: HG
authors.lastname: Bagaria
authors.forename: Yunshen
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Steven L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Bryant
authors.forename: Chun
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Huh
authors.forename: Keith P
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: Johnston