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Details of Grant 

EPSRC Reference: GR/R55450/01
Title: STUDIES OF SURFACE EFFECTS ON PHASE CHANGES IN NANOSCALE PORES
Principal Investigator: Christenson, Professor H
Other Investigators:
Researcher Co-Investigators:
Project Partners:
Department: Physics and Astronomy
Organisation: University of Leeds
Scheme: Fast Stream
Starts: 01 October 2001 Ends: 31 December 2004 Value (£): 60,677
EPSRC Research Topic Classifications:
Surfaces & Interfaces
EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications:
Manufacturing
Related Grants:
Panel History:  
Summary on Grant Application Form
A surface force apparatus will be used to study specific surface effects on the phase behaviour of substances confined in nanosize pores. A range of surface modification techniques will be used to coat muscovite mica with hydrocarbon and fluorocarbon chains. Such surfaces show differing degrees of wettability by water and many organic liquids, with contact angles between 0 and 120 degrees. The liquids will be allowed to adsorb from vapour at one isolated surface and condense in the narrow gap between two surfaces. Vapour adsorption isotherms at the isolated surfaces will be measured and the phase state of the condensate will be determined with optical interferometry. This technique permits transitions between solid, liquid and yapour states occurring in the gap between the surfaces to be studied as a function of gap width, condensate volume, temperature and wettability of the surface. The influence of surface wettability and the nature of the condensing substances on phenomena such as (i) the competition between the direct nucleation of solid from vapour and the formation of restricted liquid condensates, (ii) the melting-point depression in nanoscale pores and (iii) the occurrence of sublimation or freezing of liquid condensates as the temperature is lowered will be investigated for organic liquids and water. The results will be used to aid fundamental understanding of phase behaviour in porous media and in nanoscale systems.
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Organisation Website: http://www.leeds.ac.uk