Geometric Confinement of 3D Smectic Liquid Crystal Foams
Due to their long history and extensive applications within modern society, foams have always been a popular topic of study. These systems are present everywhere in our life. They are also valuable in many industrial applications. For this reason, it is essential to continue investigating their prop...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-03-01
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| Series: | Applied Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/13/6/3414 |
| _version_ | 1827751561851305984 |
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| author | Changshuo Fu Meghann L. Dunn Rachel N. Nere Roy Varon Weinryb Mohamed Amine Gharbi |
| author_facet | Changshuo Fu Meghann L. Dunn Rachel N. Nere Roy Varon Weinryb Mohamed Amine Gharbi |
| author_sort | Changshuo Fu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Due to their long history and extensive applications within modern society, foams have always been a popular topic of study. These systems are present everywhere in our life. They are also valuable in many industrial applications. For this reason, it is essential to continue investigating their properties and develop new materials to fabricate them. In this paper, we demonstrate a new way to create 3D foams by using an ordered viscoelastic material, the smectic liquid crystal (LC). Because of their lamellar structure, which is similar to soap, and their tunable properties that can be controlled via geometric confinement and external fields, smectic LCs are suitable for the fabrication of bubbles and foams. In this work, we present a compelling study of the parameters that influence the fabrication of LC foams in 3D. Particularly, we analyze the effects of the airflow rate and the geometry of confining boundaries on the assembly of their cells. We also compare our results to foams made with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and discuss the difference between their behaviors. Finally, we discuss how LC elasticity can substantially affect the stability and organization of foams. This work paves the way to exploiting new materials to fabricate foams with better monodispersity, uniformity, and controlled ordering that are useful in a wide range of industrial applications for which the tuning of properties is required. This includes the fields of oil recovery, decontamination, architecture, and design. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T06:59:53Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-bbf758b78058494d8afcec523a2847f9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T06:59:53Z |
| publishDate | 2023-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-bbf758b78058494d8afcec523a2847f92023-11-17T09:21:21ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172023-03-01136341410.3390/app13063414Geometric Confinement of 3D Smectic Liquid Crystal FoamsChangshuo Fu0Meghann L. Dunn1Rachel N. Nere2Roy Varon Weinryb3Mohamed Amine Gharbi4Department of Physics, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA 02125, USADepartment of Physics, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA 02125, USADepartment of Physics, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA 02125, USADepartment of Physics, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA 02125, USADepartment of Physics, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA 02125, USADue to their long history and extensive applications within modern society, foams have always been a popular topic of study. These systems are present everywhere in our life. They are also valuable in many industrial applications. For this reason, it is essential to continue investigating their properties and develop new materials to fabricate them. In this paper, we demonstrate a new way to create 3D foams by using an ordered viscoelastic material, the smectic liquid crystal (LC). Because of their lamellar structure, which is similar to soap, and their tunable properties that can be controlled via geometric confinement and external fields, smectic LCs are suitable for the fabrication of bubbles and foams. In this work, we present a compelling study of the parameters that influence the fabrication of LC foams in 3D. Particularly, we analyze the effects of the airflow rate and the geometry of confining boundaries on the assembly of their cells. We also compare our results to foams made with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and discuss the difference between their behaviors. Finally, we discuss how LC elasticity can substantially affect the stability and organization of foams. This work paves the way to exploiting new materials to fabricate foams with better monodispersity, uniformity, and controlled ordering that are useful in a wide range of industrial applications for which the tuning of properties is required. This includes the fields of oil recovery, decontamination, architecture, and design.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/13/6/3414foambubblesmectic liquid crystalgeometric confinement3D assembly |
| spellingShingle | Changshuo Fu Meghann L. Dunn Rachel N. Nere Roy Varon Weinryb Mohamed Amine Gharbi Geometric Confinement of 3D Smectic Liquid Crystal Foams Applied Sciences foam bubble smectic liquid crystal geometric confinement 3D assembly |
| title | Geometric Confinement of 3D Smectic Liquid Crystal Foams |
| title_full | Geometric Confinement of 3D Smectic Liquid Crystal Foams |
| title_fullStr | Geometric Confinement of 3D Smectic Liquid Crystal Foams |
| title_full_unstemmed | Geometric Confinement of 3D Smectic Liquid Crystal Foams |
| title_short | Geometric Confinement of 3D Smectic Liquid Crystal Foams |
| title_sort | geometric confinement of 3d smectic liquid crystal foams |
| topic | foam bubble smectic liquid crystal geometric confinement 3D assembly |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/13/6/3414 |
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