Standard calculations to determine interaction energies between particles and environmental surfaces do not account for microscopic heterogeneities on interfaces that can generate localized regions where the interaction is favorable, even though the medium's average interaction is unfavorable.  The influence of such heterogeneities on particle immobilization depends on the particle size, the amount and size of heterogeneity, the Debye length, and the hydrodynamic conditions.  Consequently, the fraction of the surface area that contributes to particle retention changes with solution chemistry conditions and particle size.  In this presentation we summarize experimental and simulation results examining the reversibility of particle retention with transients in solution chemistry.  We demonstrate that smaller particles are more susceptible to strong, largely irreversible, primary minima interactions, whereas larger particles tend to interact in a weak, reversible, secondary minimum in low velocity regions.  Hysteresis in retention occurs as a result of differences in primary and secondary minimum interactions.

Reversibility of particle retention with transients in solution chemistry

245th National Meeting (2013)

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