Electrotatic ionic liquid droplets

SENSORS AND ACTUATORS B-CHEMICAL

卷:239

Article

Francis, Wayne¹  Wagner, Klaudia^2,3  Beirne, Stephen^2,3  Officer, David L.^2,3  Wallace, Gordon G.^2,3  Florea, Larisa¹  Diamond, Dermot¹ 

[1] Dublin City Univ, Natl Ctr Sensor Res, Insight Ctr Data Analyt, Dublin 9, Ireland

[2] Univ Wollongong, ARC Ctr Excellence Electromat Sci, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia

[3] Univ Wollongong, Intelligent Polymer Res Inst, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia

关键词: ionic liquids;    Electrotaxis;    Droplets;    Surface tension;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.snb.2016.08.098

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

To our knowledge, this work describes the first example of electro-guided, self-propelled droplets composed solely of an ionic liquid (IL), namely trihexyl(tetradecyl)phosphonium chloride ([P-6,P-6,P-6,P-14][Cl]). These self-propelled droplets travel along an aqueous-air boundary to desired destinations within the fluidic network. Electrotactic movement of the droplets is due to asymmetric electro-stimulated release of a constituent of the IL droplet, the [P-6,P-6,P-6,P-14](+) ion, which is a very efficient cationic surfactant, through electrochemically generated Cl- gradients. The direction and speed of movement can be controlled by switching the impressed voltage (typically 5 - 9V) ON or OFF, and by changing the polarity of the electrodes in contact with the electrolyte solution. The Cl- gradients required for droplet movement are electrochemically generated using 3D printed electrodes which are embedded within the fluidic channels. On demand creation of these Cl- gradients electrochemically allows reversible droplet movement over expended periods of time, and provides a means for precise control over the droplet trajectory. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

【 授权许可】

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