Capillary interactions in nano-particle suspensions

We have investigated the structures formed by colloidal particles suspended in solvents at volume fractions below 10% and interacting through capillary bridges. Such systems resemble colloidal gas of sticky nano-spheres that form pearl-necklace like chains that, in turn, induce strong viscoelasticity due to the formation of 3-D fractal network. The capillary force dominates the electrostatic and Van der Waals forces in solutions and can bridge multiple particles depending of the volume of the capillary bridge. We have investigated the morphology of the structures formed at different fractions of the bridging fluid. Small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) is used to study nanoparticles with an average diameter of 10 nm in polar and non-polar organic solvents at ambient temperatures. SANS intensity as a function of the scattering vector is analyzed as a product of a form factor, that depends on the particle shape, and a structure factor, that characterizes the interparticle inter reactions. The interaction of particles in polar solvents is considered to be through electrostatic repulsion and the data is successfully fitted by Hayter-Penfold mean spherical approximation (HPMSA). Computer simulations of a pearl necklace-like chain of spheres is conducted to explain the structure factor when capillary bridges are present. Alternatively, we have analyzed the slope of the intensity at low scattering vector in a double logarithmic plot to determine the dimension of the fractal structures formed by the particles at different volume fraction of the bridging fluid. We have also studied the properties of the capillary bridge between a pair of particles. The significance of this study is to explore the possibility of using capillary force as a tool to engineer new colloidal structures and materials in solutions and to optimize their viscoelastic properties. (author)