Tunable wetting mechanism of polypyrrole surfaces and low-voltage droplet manipulation via redox

Yao Tsan Tsai, Chang Hwan Choi, Ning Gao, Eui Hyeok Yang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

45 Scopus citations

Abstract

This paper presents the experimental results and analyses on a controlled manipulation of liquid droplets upon local reduction and oxidation (redox) of a smart polymer-dodecylbenzenesulfonate doped polypyrrole (PPy(DBS)). The electrochemically tunable wetting property of PPy(DBS) permitted liquid droplet manipulation at very low voltages (-0.9 to 0.6 V). A dichloromethane (DCM) droplet was flattened upon PPy(DBS) reduction. It was found that the surface tension gradient across the droplet contact line induced Marangoni stress, which caused this deformation. Further observation of PPy(DBS)'s color change upon the redox process confirmed that the surface tension gradient was the driving force for the droplet shape change.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)4249-4256
Number of pages8
JournalLangmuir
Volume27
Issue number7
DOIs
StatePublished - 5 Apr 2011

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Tunable wetting mechanism of polypyrrole surfaces and low-voltage droplet manipulation via redox'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this