PhD defence: Particle-Stabilized, Bicontinuous Emulsions with Nanostructured Domains

The shaping of liquids opens up a whole new paradigm of applications in various fields, such as additive manufacturing, chemical processes, energy storage, and membrane-based applications. In this PhD project, we investigated different methods of shaping liquids.

We focused on two approaches: the first approach uses external means, such as gravity or hydrodynamic forces, to deform the equilibrium shape of the liquid, and further stabilize particle shape with a thin film of particles at the interface. With this approach, we introduced a new facile method of structuring liquids in all liquid systems. Secondly, we used the internal remodeling of a liquid solution to generate a high surface area liquid mesh of oil and water channels called bijel.

This research enhanced our knowledge of the different factors that affect bijel structure, and made it possible to control the structure and scaling more effectively. This study also promoted the research on the flow properties of fluids in the liquid channels and particularly the interfacial applications such as catalysis and separations.

Finally, to take advantage of the high interfacial area between the liquid phases, we introduced particle-based functionality in the bijel as a microreactor. We added catalytic alumina to the liquid interface for carrying out the chemical production of high-value epoxy compounds.

To summarize,  through this PhD research we used particles based stabilization of various liquid architectures having potential to be the host material for various applications in the chemical and energy storage industry.