Phan, A;
Stoner, HM;
Stamatakis, M;
Koh, CA;
Striolo, A;
(2022)
Surface morphology effects on clathrate hydrate wettability.
Journal of Colloid and Interface Science
, 611
pp. 421-431.
10.1016/j.jcis.2021.12.083.
Preview |
Text
1-s2.0-S0021979721022207-main.pdf - Published Version Download (3MB) | Preview |
Abstract
Hypothesis: Clathrate hydrates preferentially form at interfaces; hence, wetting properties play an important role in their formation, growth, and agglomeration. Experimental evidence suggests that the hydrate preparation process can strongly affect contact angle measurements, leading to the different results reported in the literature. These differences hamper technological progress. We hypothesize that changes in hydrate surface morphologies are responsible for the wide variation of contact angles reported in the literature. // Experiments: Experimental testing of our hypothesis is problematic due to the preparation history of hydrates on their surface properties, and the difficulties in advanced surface characterization. Thus, we employ molecular dynamics simulations, which allow us to systematically change the interfacial features and the system composition. Implementing advanced algorithms, we quantify fundamental thermodynamic properties to validate our observations. // Findings: We achieve excellent agreement with experimental observations for both atomically smooth and rough hydrate surfaces. Our results suggest that contact line pinning forces, enhanced by surface heterogeneity, are accountable for altering water contact angles, thus explaining the differences among reported experimental data. Our analysis and molecular level insights help interpret adhesion force measurements and yield a better understanding of the agglomeration between hydrate particles, providing a microscopic tool for advancing flow assurance applications.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Surface morphology effects on clathrate hydrate wettability |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.jcis.2021.12.083 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2021.12.083 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
| Keywords: | Contact angle; Pinning force; Work of adhesion; Interfacial tension; Surface heterogeneity |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Chemical Engineering |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10141089 |
Archive Staff Only
 |
View Item |
