A precise representation of the spatial distribution of hydrophobicity, hydrophilicity and charges on the molecular surface of proteins is critical for the understanding of the interaction with small molecules and larger systems. The representation of hydrophobicity is rarely done at atom-level, as this property is generally assigned to residues. A new methodology for the derivation of atomic h...

A study of the self-organization of colloidal particles during the evaporation of particle solutions on chemically patterned surfaces is presented. On a surface with hydrophilic and hydrophobic regions, colloidal particles form compact structures on the hydrophilic sites. When a colloidal solution containing a mixture of particles with a variation in size is used, the number density of each typ...

We study by molecular dynamics simulations the wetting/dewetting transition and the dependence of the free energy on distance between plates that contain both hydrophobic and hydrophilic particles. We show that dewetting and strength of hydrophobic interaction is very sensitive to the distribution of hydrophobic and hydrophilic domains. In particular, we find that plates characterized by a larg...

Capillary evaporation (cavitation) has been suggested to be a possible source of long range interactions between mesoscopic hydrophobic surfaces. While evaporation is predicted by thermodynamics, little is known about its kinetics. Glauber dynamics Monte Carlo simulations of a lattice gas close to liquid-gas coexistence and confined between partially drying surfaces are used to model the effect...

"Stickies" are tacky species, present in recycled paper and coated broke, derived from coating formulations, adhesives etc. They impact negatively on paper quality and cause web runnability problems by deposit build-up. To sustain recycling, stickies are controlled by adsorbing them onto minerals added to the recycled stock. We report isotherms for a fatty acid ester defoamer and an acrylic aci...

Contact electrochemical replication (CER) is a novel pattern replication methodology advanced in this laboratory that offers the unprecedented capability of direct one-step reproduction of monolayer surface patterns consisting of hydrophilic domains surrounded by a hydrophobic monolayer background (hydrophilic @ hydrophobic monolayer patterns), regardless of how the initial "master" pattern was...

Thioester-functionalized, siloxane-anchored, self-assembled monolayers provide a powerful tool for controlling the chemical and physical properties of surfaces. The thioester moiety is relatively stable to long-term storage and its structure can be systematically varied so as to provide a well-defined range of reactivity and wetting properties. The oxidation of thioesters with different-chain-l...

Superhydrophobic surfaces are attractive as self-cleaning protective coatings in harsh environments with extreme temperatures and pH levels. Hexagonal phase boron nitride (h-BN) films are promising protective coatings due to their extraordinary chemical and thermal stability. However, their high surface energy makes them hydrophilic and thus not applicable as water repelling coatings. Our recen...

Pseudomonas putida biofilms were developed on and biofilm accumulation rate data were obtained for the following two classes of support materials: charged surfaces and noncharged hydrophobic and hydrophilic surfaces. The effects of surface roughness and porosity on the rate of microbial attachment were also examined. Materials bearing a net positive or negative surface charge supported the grea...