The adsorption of single colloidal microparticles (0.5-1 µm radius) at a water-oil interface has been recently studied experimentally using digital holographic microscopy [Kaz et al., Nat. Mater., 2012, 11, 138-142]. An initially fast adsorption dynamics driven by capillary forces is followed by an unexpectedly slow relaxation to equilibrium that is logarithmic in time and can span hours or days. The slow relaxation kinetics has been attributed to the presence of surface "defects" with nanoscale dimensions (1-5 nm) that induce multiple metastable configurations of the contact line perimeter. A kinetic model considering thermally activated transitions between such metastable configurations has been proposed [Colosqui et al., Phys. Rev. Lett., 2013, 111, 028302] to predict both the relaxation rate and the crossover point to the slow logarithmic regime. However, the adsorption dynamics observed experimentally before the crossover point has remained unstudied. In this work, we propose a Langevin model that is able to describe the entire adsorption process of single colloidal particles by considering metastable states produced by surface defects and thermal motion of the particle and liquid interface. Invoking the fluctuation dissipation theorem, we introduce a drag term that considers significant dissipative forces induced by thermal fluctuations of the liquid interface. Langevin dynamics simulations based on the proposed adsorption model yield close agreement with experimental observations for different microparticles, capturing the crossover from (fast) capillary driven dynamics to (slow) thermally activated kinetics.

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Plane Poiseuille flow past a nanoscale cylinder that is arbitrarily confined (i.e., symmetrically or asymmetrically confined) in a slit channel is studied via hydrodynamic lubrication theory and molecular dynamics simulations, considering cases where the cylinder remains static or undergoes thermal motion. Lubrication theory predictions for the drag force and volumetric flow rate are in close agreement with molecular dynamics simulations of flows having molecularly thin lubrication gaps, despite the presence of significant structural forces induced by the crystalline structure of the modeled solid. While the maximum drag force is observed in symmetric confinement, i.e., when the cylinder is equidistant from both channel walls, the drag decays significantly as the cylinder moves away from the channel centerline and approaches a wall. Hence, significant reductions in the mean drag force on the cylinder and hydraulic resistance of the channel can be observed when thermal motion induces random off-center displacements. Analytical expressions and numerical results in this work provide useful insights into the hydrodynamics of colloidal solids and macromolecules in confinement.