In this work, a comprehensive series of experiments is conducted to investigate the drying behavior of micro- and nanosized particle dispersions. To this end, an acoustic levitator was used to study the drying kinetics of single droplets. The temporal evolution of the actual droplets was recorded using a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) camera, and the solid grains produced at the end of drying were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging. At the end of drying, the grains show different morphologies as a function of the particle size, concentration, and initial droplet volume. We combine these experimental data to show the drying behavior is dependent on all the parameters and that the data all collapse when plotted against the Péclet number. This resulted in a novel characteristic diagram which allows one to predict the shape of the dried colloidal droplet based on Pe. Our results extend the fundamental understanding of the mechanisms controlling the drying of droplet suspensions.

Controlling film peeling by modifying the properties of the evaporating solution and consequently the length of the drying front.

No abstract

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We investigated the drying dynamics and resulting salt deposition patterns from evaporating saline droplets on fabricated graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) membranes. As evaporation proceeds, the salt concentration increases until it exceeds substantially the solubility limit which results in the formation of salt crystals. Scanning electron microscopy imaging enabled us to investigate how the properties of the fabricated membranes influence the salt deposition patterns and crystal morphology, providing us with an opportunity to control salt deposition patterns on the surface. The observation from the drying of saline droplets on fabricated GO and rGO membranes leads us to conclude that combined effects of the membrane roughness, interlayer spacing, and nanochannel connectivity determines the drying dynamics and the final salt deposition patterns. Our results extend the understanding of the interaction between surface properties and salt deposition patterns, which is relevant information for various engineering processes such as coating of marine vessels and in water remediation technologies.