Soft Matter Blog

The role of adsorbed particles on interfaces between immiscible fluids is important in many applications such as the stabilisation of droplets in Pickering emulsions in foods, cosmetics and oil recovery. They are also fundamentally interesting, particularly in materials science, in studies on the formation of functional membranes from monolayers of nano- or micro-particles. The geometry of the fluid interface must be considered as it is not always planar.

This hot paper by Dinsmore and colleagues analyses the adsorption of one or more spherical particles on a fluid interface that is initially curved in an anisotropic shape. The authors study the effect of interfacial curvature on the binding energy and on the associated capillary force exerted on the particles. The paper reports that the binding energy of one particle on a curved interface depends on the interface shape for the particle and not the local shape. Conversely, the binding energy for two particles depends only on the local shape.

Capillary interactions among spherical particles at curved liquid interfaces
Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 8582. DOI: 10.1039/c2sm25871d (free to read for a short time)

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Effect of lipid architecture on cubic phase susceptibility to crystallisation screens

Many therapeutics for diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease target membrane proteins. Structural characterisation of the proteins is required to produce better drugs, but growing high quality crystals for X-ray diffraction analysis can be a challenge. In this hot paper (front cover of Soft Matter Issue 26), Conn and co-workers report on the structural characterisation of four different lipids. The lipids were successfully used in the growth of membrane protein crystals, the structures of which were studied using SAXS and WAXS.

Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 6884-6896

Swelling-induced long-range ordered structure formation in polyelectrolyte hydrogel

In this hot paper (front cover of Soft Matter Issue 31), Gong and co-workers describe a strategy for introducing long-range ordered structure in amorphous hydrogels using dynamic mechano-complexation coupling in a non-equilibrium process. They report the swelling of a hydrogel consisting of poly(2,20-disulfonyl-4,40-benzidine terephthalamide) (PBDT). The mechanism of non-equilibrium structure formation is discussed and may provide insights into the formation of biomacromolecules, such as the growth of biological organs.

Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 8060-8066

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Simulation of fusion-mediated nanoemulsion interactions with model lipid bilayers

Coarse-grain simulations have been used to model atomistic structures of biological emulsions such as lipoproteins. This hot paper by Baker and co-workers presents a new coarse-grained perfluorooctylbromide (PFOB) model. The paper focuses on the initial step of the contact-facilitated delivery mechanism. This work could be used in new studies to understand the delivery mechanism of cargo molecules to target cells trough membrane fusion.

Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 7024–7035

Biomimetic fabrication of genetically engineered collagen peptide-assembled freestanding films reinforced by quantum dot joints

The biomimetic fabrication of nanomaterials is very important in many applications. Biomimetic films using a molecular self-assembly approach can be fragile and have a Young’s modulus less than 10 GPa. In this hot paper, Matsui and co-workers describe the preparation of freestanding films using collagen peptides and quantum dots. The films have a Young’s modulus of ~20 GPa and other interesting mechanical properties. The new films could potentially be applied to substrate-free electronics, ultrafast filtration and tissue engineering.

Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 6871-6875

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Ion electrodiffusion governs silk electrogelation

The formation of biocompatible medical adhesives based on silk hydrogels can be controlled by electric fields.  The elongation of the silk fibres is dependent on factors such as the value of the applied DC current, pH and silk fibroin concentration.  In this hot paper, Kaplan and co-workers describe a model which describes the transition of silk fibroin solution to a gel sate whereby the silk elongation can be mediated by a local change of the pH. The model was confirmed experimentally suggesting it could be used to calculate the amount of current needed for desired gel state growth under various conditions.

(Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 6897-6905 )

Interfacial viscoelasticity controls buckling, wrinkling and arrest in emulsion drops undergoing mass transfer

Oil droplets in emulsions are widely used for foods, consumer products and pharmaceutical applications. The mass transfer and ripening processes in emulsions with complex, non-Newtonian interfaces is little studied. In this hot paper, Erni and co-workers present a detailed study of the effect of interfacial rheological properties on compositional ripening in emulsions. The results are expected to have applications in the design and engineering of delivery systems in pharmaceuticals, phytochemicals, and flavour or fragrance compounds.

(Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 6958-6967)

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