(350e) Phase Behavior of Lipid-Polymer Nanobubbles | AIChE

(350e) Phase Behavior of Lipid-Polymer Nanobubbles

Authors 

Badami, J. V. - Presenter, The City College of New York


The development of microbubble systems has allowed the clinical application of ultrasound to progress as a viable option for medical imaging purposes due to the echogenic properties they demonstrate.  Simultaneously, these structures also serve as practical carriers for drug delivery purposes.  These systems are typically limited however by overall size which hinders their ability to navigate throughout specific vasculature, such as that commonly seen in tumors.  Size and stability of these systems comes as a direct consequence of interfacial interactions that take place amongst shell components and a greater understanding of these interactions is instrumental to the further development of the field.  Polymeric materials show great promise as stabilizing agents since they can be finely controlled in both size and composition.  In this work we investigate the fundamental aspects of bubble stabilization using polymeric materials to further enhance the lifetime associated with such bubbles.  We explore the fundamental phase behavior demonstrated by these shell materials and aim to determine the particular effects they invoke on the elasticity and stability of bubbles at sub-micron scales.  Lastly, the microstructure associated with such phase behavior is studied using microscopy techniques in order to gain a greater understanding of the interfacial ordering present.