Direct measuring of single-heterogeneous bubble nucleation mediated by surface topology

Heterogeneous bubble nucleation is one of the most fundamental interfacial processes ranging from nature to technology. There is excellent evidence that surface topology is important in directing heterogeneous nucleation; however, deep understanding of the energetics by which nanoscale architectures...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 2022-07, Vol.119 (29), p.e2205827119-e2205827119
Main Authors: Deng, Xiaoli, Shan, Yun, Meng, Xiaohui, Yu, Zhaoyang, Lu, Xiaoxi, Ma, Yunqing, Zhao, Jiao, Qiu, Dong, Zhang, Xianren, Liu, Yuwen, Chen, Qianjin
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Electrochemical cells
Electrochemistry
Finite element method
Free energy
Mathematical models
Nanoparticles
Nucleation
Physical Sciences
Silica
Topology
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Summary:Heterogeneous bubble nucleation is one of the most fundamental interfacial processes ranging from nature to technology. There is excellent evidence that surface topology is important in directing heterogeneous nucleation; however, deep understanding of the energetics by which nanoscale architectures promote nucleation is still challenging. Herein, we report a direct and quantitative measurement of single-bubble nucleation on a single silica nanoparticle within a microsized droplet using scanning electrochemical cell microscopy. Local gas concentration at nucleation is determined from finite element simulation at the corresponding faradaic current of the peak-featured voltammogram. It is demonstrated that the criteria gas concentration for nucleation first drops and then rises with increasing nanoparticle radius. An optimum nanoparticle radius around 10 nm prominently expedites the nucleation by facilitating the special topological nanoconfinements that consequently catalyze the nucleation. Moreover, the experimental result is corroborated by our theoretical calculations of free energy change based on the classic nucleation theory. This study offers insights into the impact of surface topology on heterogenous nucleation that have not been previously observed.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.2205827119