Dynamics of Fracture in Drying Suspensions

Dufresne, Eric R.; Stark, D.; Greenblatt, N. A.; Cheng, Ji‐Xin; Hutchinson, John W.; Mahadevan, L.; Weitz, D. A.

doi:10.1021/la061251+

Cited by 134 publications

(177 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…3 E and F). It is noteworthy that the preference for a vertical orientation of tortuous cracks has been predicted and observed in vertically grown colloidal crystals (50). However, no such cracks develop for our (thick) I-SiO 2 films, instead revealing straight fracture lines running along the f110g planes; i.e., horizontally and at 30°to the vertical direction.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 58%

Assembly of large-area, highly ordered, crack-free inverse opal films

Hatton

Mishchenko

Davis

et al. 2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

503

578

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Whereas considerable interest exists in self-assembly of well-ordered, porous “inverse opal” structures for optical, electronic, and (bio)chemical applications, uncontrolled defect formation has limited the scale-up and practicality of such approaches. Here we demonstrate a new method for assembling highly ordered, crack-free inverse opal films over a centimeter scale. Multilayered composite colloidal crystal films have been generated via evaporative deposition of polymeric colloidal spheres suspended within a hydrolyzed silicate sol-gel precursor solution. The coassembly of a sacrificial colloidal template with a matrix material avoids the need for liquid infiltration into the preassembled colloidal crystal and minimizes the associated cracking and inhomogeneities of the resulting inverse opal films. We discuss the underlying mechanisms that may account for the formation of large-area defect-free films, their unique preferential growth along the 〈110〉 direction and unusual fracture behavior. We demonstrate that this coassembly approach allows the fabrication of hierarchical structures not achievable by conventional methods, such as multilayered films and deposition onto patterned or curved surfaces. These robust SiO 2 inverse opals can be transformed into various materials that retain the morphology and order of the original films, as exemplified by the reactive conversion into Si or TiO 2 replicas. We show that colloidal coassembly is available for a range of organometallic sol-gel and polymer matrix precursors, and represents a simple, low-cost, scalable method for generating high-quality, chemically tailorable inverse opal films for a variety of applications.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 58%

Assembly of large-area, highly ordered, crack-free inverse opal films

Hatton

Mishchenko

Davis

et al. 2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

503

578

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“…Further drying leads to a repetition of this cycle. Although individual cracks move intermittently via a stick-slip-like motion, on average the crack front advances diffusively, following the drying front, albeit slightly behind it (12).…”

Section: Scaling Theorymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The latter formations have fascinated casual observers, artists, and scientists for centuries (8)(9)(10), but no comprehensive physical theory for their form or scale exists. Indeed, it is only in the past decade or so that careful laboratory experiments have started to address the dependence of any of these crack patterns on such quantities as the rate of drying or cooling, the thickness of the layers, and their mechanical properties (4)(5)(6)(7)(11)(12)(13). For example, recent experiments show that crack formation and propagation in drying thin films leads to length scales and patterns that can be strongly timedependent; cracks in directionally drying films grow diffusively at short times, and can advance intermittently via stick-slip-like motion over longer times (11,12).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Indeed, it is only in the past decade or so that careful laboratory experiments have started to address the dependence of any of these crack patterns on such quantities as the rate of drying or cooling, the thickness of the layers, and their mechanical properties (4)(5)(6)(7)(11)(12)(13). For example, recent experiments show that crack formation and propagation in drying thin films leads to length scales and patterns that can be strongly timedependent; cracks in directionally drying films grow diffusively at short times, and can advance intermittently via stick-slip-like motion over longer times (11,12). The patterns formed by these cracks depend in detail on the spatiotemporal dynamics of drying, substrate adhesion, and thickness variations (4,6,13,14).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Nonequilibrium scale selection mechanism for columnar jointing

Goehring

Mahadevan²,

Morris³

2009

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

Self Cite

113

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Crack patterns in laboratory experiments on thick samples of drying cornstarch are geometrically similar to columnar joints in cooling lava found at geological sites such as the Giant's Causeway. We present measurements of the crack spacing from both laboratory and geological investigations of columnar jointing, and show how these data can be collapsed onto a single master scaling curve. This is due to the underlying mathematical similarity between theories for the cracking of solids induced by differential drying or by cooling. We use this theory to give a simple quantitative explanation of how these geometrically similar crack patterns arise from a single dynamical law rooted in the nonequilibrium nature of the phenomena. We also give scaling relations for the characteristic crack spacing in other limits consistent with our experiments and observations, and discuss the implications of our results for the control of crack patterns in thin and thick solid films.pattern formation | fracture | geomorphology | volcanology | faulting D rying solids lose moisture from their exposed surfaces and shrink as a consequence. Similarly, cooling solids lose heat from their exposed surfaces and shrink as a consequence. In either case, this differential shrinkage of one part of the solid relative to another leads to stresses that can eventually lead to cracking (1-3). Although much is known about the nucleation, growth, dynamics, and stability of a single crack in an elastic solid, most questions associated with the patterns of multiple cracks due to stresses that arise from nonequilibrium processes such as drying and cooling (4-7) remain wide open. The resulting polygonal planform patterns can arise in a variety of situations, from the mundane cracks in drying mud, to the deliberately artistic cracks in ceramics and pottery, to the spectacular columnar joint formations of the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland, Fingal's Cave on Staffa, in Scotland, and the Devil's Postpile in California. The latter formations have fascinated casual observers, artists, and scientists for centuries (8-10), but no comprehensive physical theory for their form or scale exists. Indeed, it is only in the past decade or so that careful laboratory experiments have started to address the dependence of any of these crack patterns on such quantities as the rate of drying or cooling, the thickness of the layers, and their mechanical properties (4-7, 11-13). For example, recent experiments show that crack formation and propagation in drying thin films leads to length scales and patterns that can be strongly timedependent; cracks in directionally drying films grow diffusively at short times, and can advance intermittently via stick-slip-like motion over longer times (11,12). The patterns formed by these cracks depend in detail on the spatiotemporal dynamics of drying, substrate adhesion, and thickness variations (4,6,13,14). This immediately suggests a nonequilibrium origin to these crack patterns, one that couples the heterogeneous elastic stresses in th...

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“…The appearance of three distinct fronts have frequently been reported, which represent solidification, cracking, and pore opening (e.g. [3][4][5][6][7][8]). For films that are dried below their critical film thickness, the fracture front is absent, and the film dries without breaking [3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Solidification and Ordering during Directional Drying of a Colloidal Dispersion

2010

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During drying, colloidal dispersions undergo processes such as solidification, cracking, and the draining of interstitial pores. Here we show that the solidification of polystyrene and silica dispersions, during directional drying, occurs in two separate stages. These correspond to the initial ordering, and subsequent aggregation, of the colloidal particles. Transitions between these stages are observed as changes in transparency and color that propagate as distinct fronts along the drying layer. The dynamics of these fronts are shown to arise from a balance between compressive capillary forces, and the electrostatic and van der Waals forces described by DLVO theory. This suggests a simple method by which the maximum inter-particle repulsion between particles can be measured through the optical inspection of the dynamics of a drying dispersion, under a microscope.

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Dynamics of Fracture in Drying Suspensions

Cited by 134 publications

References 18 publications

Assembly of large-area, highly ordered, crack-free inverse opal films

Assembly of large-area, highly ordered, crack-free inverse opal films

Nonequilibrium scale selection mechanism for columnar jointing

Solidification and Ordering during Directional Drying of a Colloidal Dispersion

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