Ultrasonic emulsions

Although discrete emulsification can be accomplished with ultrasonic baths, probes are more frequently used for this purpose because they can directly transmit US energy to a liquid-liquid system. Figure 6.7A illustrates a straightfonward procedure for obtaining an ultrasonic emulsion. The sonotrode is immersed either into the continuous phase and the phase to be dispersed is gradually added or into the two-phase system while ultrasonic energy is applied. In the latter case, the tip of the probe can be positioned at the interface [44] between the two immiscible liquids or in the continuous (or dispersed) phase, irrespective of their... 

Eor the preparation of suspensions and emulsions, coUoid mills and homogenizers, respectively, are used. Ultrasonic mills that utilize vibrating reeds in restricted chambers to reduce the particle size of the dispersed ingredients can also be employed (see Colloids Ultrasonics). 

Ultrasonic spectroscopy technology, developed in the early 1990s, is proving useful in the lubricant and food industries for measurement of od-in-water emulsions at process concentrations. This technology is anticipated to find a wide range of industrial appHcations. 

Shortly after the liquid-breathing expenment [f] was published, the same liquid was used to perfuse an isolated heart from an animal [6], by intermittent perfusion with typical aqueous buffer and fluorocarbon Then Sloviter [7] showed that an emulsion of this fluorocarbon liquid, made by ultrasonication with an albumin solution, could sustain the life of the brain of a rat as well as or better than perfusing... 

Although NMRI is a very well-suited experimental technique for quantifying emulsion properties such as velocity profiles, droplet concentration distributions and microstructural information, several alternative techniques can provide similar or complementary information to that obtained by NMRI. Two such techniques, ultrasonic spectroscopy and diffusing wave spectroscopy, can be employed in the characterization of concentrated emulsions in situ and without dilution [45],... 

In terms of measuring emulsion microstructure, ultrasonics is complementary to NMRI in that it is sensitive to droplet flocculation [54], which is the aggregation of droplets into clusters, or floes, without the occurrence of droplet fusion, or coalescence, as described earlier. Flocculation is an emulsion destabilization mechanism because it disrupts the uniform dispersion of discrete droplets. Furthermore, flocculation promotes creaming in the emulsion, as large clusters of droplets separate rapidly from the continuous phase, and also promotes coalescence, because droplets inside the clusters are in close contact for long periods of time. Ideally, a full characterization of an emulsion would include NMRI measurements of droplet size distributions, which only depend on the interior dimensions of the droplets and therefore are independent of flocculation, and also ultrasonic spectroscopy, which can characterize flocculation properties. 

D. J. McClements, N. Herrmann, Y. Hemar 1998, (Influence of flocculation on the ultrasonic properties of emulsions theory), J. Phys. D Appl. Phys. 31, 2950. 

For general aspects on sonochemistry the reader is referred to references [174,180], and for cavitation to references [175,186]. Cordemans [187] has briefly reviewed the use of (ultra)sound in the chemical industry. Typical applications include thermally induced polymer cross-linking, dispersion of Ti02 pigments in paints, and stabilisation of emulsions. High power ultrasonic waves allow rapid in situ copolymerisation and compatibilisation of immiscible polymer melt blends. Roberts [170] has reviewed high-intensity ultrasonics, cavitation and relevant parameters (frequency, intensity,... 

Ultrasonically assisted extraction is also widely used for the isolation of effective medical components and bioactive principles from plant material [195]. The most common application of low-intensity ultrasound is as an analytical technique for providing information about the physico-chemical properties of foods, such as in the analysis of edible fats and oils (oil composition, oil content, droplet size of emulsions, and solid fat content) [171,218]. Ultrasonic techniques are also used for fluids characterisation [219]. 

Hacias KJ, Cormier GJ, Nourie SM, Kubel EJ (1997) Guide to acid, alkaline, emulsion, and ultrasonic cleaning. ASM International, Materials Park... 

Liquid-driven transducers (i.e. a liquid whistle) can be used to produce efficient homogenization. The majority of the chemical effects observed using whistle-type transducers for the sonication of non-homogeneous reactions can be attributed mainly to the generation of very fine emulsions leading to increase in the interfacial phenomena rather than the ultrasonic irradiation itself. 

Bradley M, Grieser F (2002) Emulsion polymerization synthesis of cationic polymer latex in an ultrasonic field. J Colloids Interface Sci 251 (1) 78—84... 

Mahdi C, Oualid H, Fatiha A, Christian P (2010) Study on ultrasonically assisted emulsification and recovery of copper(II) from wastewater using an emulsion liquid membrane process. Ultrason Sonochem 17(2) 318-325... 

The effect of ultrasound on liquid-liquid interfaces between immiscible fluids is emulsification. This is one of the major industrial uses of ultrasound (74-76) and a variety of apparatus have been devised which will generate micrometer-sized emulsions (9). The mechanism of ultrasonic emulsification lies in the shearing stresses and deformations created by the sound field of larger droplets. When these stresses become greater than the interfacial surface tension, the droplet will burst (77,78). The chemical effects of emulsification lie principally in the greatly increased surface area of contact between the two immiscible liquids. Results not unlike phase transfer catalysis may be expected. 

Unlike the known approaches we develop the use of water- fuel emulsions with the soluble in water catalytic non- corroding additions and ultrasonic mixing by the sharp superheated steam for reduction of the oxides of nitrogen and soot emission in the combustion engines. Our know how is also the use of the electro-activated water for emulgation. The first results testily the technical and economic expedience of the chosen direction. 

Ultrasound is known to generate extremely fine emulsions from mixtures of immiscible liquids. Ultrasonic homogenisation has been used for many years in the food industry for the production of tomato sauce, mayormaise and other similar blended items. In chemistry such extremely fine emulsions provide enormous interfacial contact areas between immiscible liquids and thus the potential for greater reaction between the phases. This can be particularly beneficial in phase transfer catalysis. 

It is liquid-liquid reactions involving phase transfer catalysts which generally benefit from the use of ultrasound. Sonication produces homogenisation - i. e. very fine emulsions - which greatly increase the reactive interfacial area and allows faster reaction at lower temperatures. Davidson has reported an example of this with the ultrasonically enhanced saponification of wool waxes by aqueous sodium hydroxide using tetra n-heptyl ammonium bromide as a PTC [124]. 

Recently Biggs [74] has investigated the emulsion polymerisation of styrene using ultrasonic irradiation as the initiation source (i. e. in the absence of a chemical initiator). Similar to Lorimer and Mason using a thermally initiated system, Biggs found both a marked increase in monomer conversion rate as a function of time as the ultrasonic intensity was increased but remarkable constancy in the resultant latex particle... 

Polystyrene can be prepared as follows A mixture of styrene, detergent (Na-dodecanoate), and water is agitated ultrasonically to produce a fine emulsion. On the addition of hydrogen peroxide (initiator), PS is obtained as a polymer, which can be extracted after filtration. The polymer molecular weight is determined by various methods (such as light scattering and osmotic pressure). 

McClements DJ. Principles of ultrasonic droplet size determination in emulsions. Langmuir 1996 12 3454-3461. 

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