(627f) Comparison between Surfactants and Particles in Stabilizing Oil-in-Glycol Emulsions

Non-aqueous emulsions are a particular case of emulsions with broader applications in mini emulsion formation, polymer synthesis, interfacial catalysis, and actives stabilization. Oil-in-glycol emulsions are especially useful for interfacial reactions, lubrication, and personal care applications. Previous studies have tried to understand how different surfactants effect emulsion stability in these types of systems but there are few systematic studies that have been done to understand how surfactant structure and HLB impact emulsion formation and phase behavior. In this talk we will discuss the phase behavior of various nonionic surfactants and fumed silica particles with varying hydrophobicity in different glycols and how they subsequently affect the stabilization of a mineral oil phase in the glycol. We used a combination of interfacial tension measurements, visual observations, along with optical microscopy to probe these effects.