An Experimental Investigation of Cavitation Bulk Nanobubbles Characteristics: Effects of pH and Surface-active Agents

TL;DR

This study investigates how pH and surfactants affect nanobubbles' formation, size, stability, and surface charge, revealing that zeta potential primarily governs nanobubbles' behavior and longevity in aqueous solutions.

Contribution

It provides new insights into the influence of surfactants and pH on nanobubbles' characteristics, using DLVO theory to interpret stability and exploring ion distribution effects.

Findings

Nanobubbles are smaller and more stable in neutral pH.

Zeta potential significantly influences nanobubbles' size and stability.

Stability decreases in solutions with pH below 3.

Abstract

Understanding the behavior of nanobubbles (NBs) in various aqueous solutions is a challenging task. The present work investigates the effects of various surfactants (i.e., anionic, cationic, and nonionic) and pH medium on bulk NBs formation, size, concentration, bubble size distribution (BSD), zeta potential, and stability. The effect of surfactant was investigated at various concentrations above and below critical micelle concentrations. NBs were created in DI water using a piezoelectric transducer. The stability of NBs was assessed by tracking the change in size and concentration over time. NBs size is small in the neutral medium compared to the other surfactant or pH mediums. The size, concentration, BSD, and stability of NBs are strongly influenced by the zeta potential rather than the solution medium. BSD curve shifts to lower bubble sizes when the magnitude of zeta potential is high in any solution. NBs were observed to exist for a long time, either in pure water, surfactant, or pH solutions. The longevity of NBs is shortened in environments with pH less than 3. Surfactant adsorption on the NBs surface increases with surfactant concentration up to a certain limit, beyond which it declines considerably. The Derjaguin-LandauVerwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory was used to interpret the NBs stability, which resulted in a total potential energy barrier that is positive and greater than 43.90kBT for pH ranging from 6.0 to 11.0, whereas, for pH below 6, the potential energy barrier essentially vanishes. Moreover, an effort has also been made to elucidate the plausible prospect of ion distribution and its alignment surrounding NBs in cationic and anionic surfactants. The present research will extend the in-depth investigation of NBs for industrial applications involving NBs.