Abstract:
Surfactants can alter the properties of solid/liquid and liquid/gas interfaces, thereby influencing the interactions between particles and bubbles. Previous studies have extensively investigated the thinning of liquid films between particles and bubbles in pure water, as well as the formation and spread of the three-phase contact line (TPL). However, the impact of surfactants on the bubble spreading process remains unclear. Therefore, by tracking the dynamic spreading process of slowly growing bubbles on different solid surfaces using high-speed cameras and analyzing the evolution of TPL with MATLAB software, this study systematically examined the effects of cationic surfactant CTAB, anionic surfactant SDS, and nonionic surfactant Tween-80 on the kinetics of bubble TPL spreading. Results indicate that TPL on both glass and teflon solid surfaces in surfactant systems exhibit characteristics of rapid and slow spreading stages. Due to the heterogeneity by the organic/inorganic mixture and hydrophobic/hydrophilic sites on coal surfaces, as well as the uneven distribution of microbubbles and cracks, surfactants show a significant influence on slow spreading stage. Due to the Marangoni effect during the spreading process, the liquid moves towards the three-phase contact line, inhibiting the spreading of TPL. As the concentration increases, the Marangoni effect strengthens, resulting in a decrease in the final spreading length of TPL. However, three surfactants contact solid surfaces with different adsorption ways due to their different charges, thereby affecting the bubble spreading process.