Particle-Stabilized Emulsions and Colloids: Formation and Applications

There has been much scientific interest in the behaviour of colloidal particles at liquid interfaces. From a research aspect they provide model systems for fundamental studies of condensed matter physics. From a commercial aspect they provide applications for making new materials in the cosmetics, food and paint industries.

In many cases of colloidal particles at interfaces, the mechanism of particle interactions is still unknown. Particle-Stabilized Emulsions and Colloids looks at recent studies on the behaviour of particles at liquid interfaces. The book first introduces the basic concepts and principles of colloidal particles at liquid-liquid interfaces including the interactions and conformations. The book then discusses the latest advances in emulsions and bicontinuous emulsions stabilized by both solid and soft particles and finally the book covers applications in food science and oil extraction.

With contributions from leading experts in these fields, this book will provide a background to academic researchers, engineers, and graduate students in chemistry, physics and materials science. The commercial aspects will also be of interest to those working in the cosmetics, food and oil industry.

To Ngai is an associate professor in Chemistry department at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). In recent years, he has mainly focused on the study of synthetic strategies for hydrogel colloidal particles, as well as their physicochemical properties, such as their behavior as dispersions and their assembly at interfaces. In particular, he has been interested in using microgel particles to stabilize emulsions and has successfully demonstrated that the soft and porous microgels give rise to special dynamic properties of interfacial layers, packing structure and emulsion stability. As a result, he has published a number of papers on this topic and extended such microgel-stabilized emulsions for the fabrication of novel materials.

Stefan A. F. Bon is an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Warwick. He has studied chemical engineering at the Eindhoven University of Technology (TUe) in the Netherlands (cum laude, 1989-1993). He did his Ph.D. (1993-1998) in the polymer chemistry group of prof.dr.ir. Anton L. German at TUe, after which he worked as a post-doctoral research assistant in the group of prof. David M. Haddleton at the University of Warwick (1998-2000). He was appointed as Unilever Lecturer in Polymer Chemistry at the University of Warwick in January 2001. During this period of research he focussed on the mechanistic aspects of living radical polymerisation in both homogeneous and heterogeneous systems, including the first ever living radical polymerization performed in emulsion. From 2005 Stefan Bon shifted his research interests from living radical polymerization to supracolloidal polymer chemistry. Current research focusses on the design of assembled supracolloidal structures and the synthesis of their colloidal and macromolecular building blocks through combination of polymer chemistry, colloid science, soft matter physics, and chemical engineering. Stefan Bon is a Fellow of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), a board member of the UK Polymer Colloids Forum (UKPCF), and an invited member and current vice-chair of the International Polymer Colloids Group (IPCG).