ABSTRACT: The phenomenon of adsorption of colloidal particles at interfaces to stabilize the emulsions has been known for more than a century. Today, particle-stabilized emulsions, or so-called Pickering emulsions are receiving growing attention in the scientific and industrial communities. However, our fundamental understanding of the connection between particle properties and emulsion characteristics is still surprisingly poor.
This presentation will summarize the general principles used in the assembly of colloidal particles at liquid interfaces. In particular, I will discuss the physical behavior of colloidal particles trapped at the interfaces and address that Pickering emulsions can serve as a template for the fabrication of novel functional materials which will have a great potential for applying in a variety of applications.
Bio-sketch: To NGAI has received his B.S. in chemistry at the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 1999. In 2003, he obtained his Ph.D. in chemistry in the same university under the supervision of Professor Chi Wu. He moved to BASF (Ludwigshafen, Germany) in 2003; first as the postdoctoral fellow for one year, then as the chemist in Dr. Helmut Auweter and Dr. Sven-Holger Behrens’s research group. In July 2005, he went to Professor Timothy P Lodge’s group in the Chemistry Department of the University of Minnesota, working on polymer blending. He joined the Chemistry Department at CUHK in 2006 as a research assistant professor and worked on colloidal interactions using his newly established single-particle force measurement technique for two years. He has been appointed as an assistant professor in 2008, and since 2012, he has been promoted to associate professor in the Chemistry Department. His research currently focuses on the chemistry and physics of interfaces.