Spatio-temporal probing of surfactant cleaning - coupling of microfluidic DLS and SANS

Cleaning of triacylglycerols (TAGs), informally known as triglycerides or simply ‘fats’, is a complex process involving emulsification, transport, and removal, aided by surfactant formulations. Often, naturally occurring ‘fats’ also comprise various free fatty acids (FAs), phospholipids, sterols, and tocopherols. The importance of ‘cleaning’ ranges from household to industrial applications, in manufacturing and food plants. In this SANS proposal, we will carry out a model cleaning process, employing a microfluidic cell coupled with a fibre-optic DLS, developed in our laboratory, in order to spatio-temporally resolve the sequence of events associated with the removal of a model TAG, with a model surfactant formulation at low temperature. We propose to carry out the first “online SANS cleaning experiment”, which will highlight a unique value of SANS in tackling ubiquitous and practically relevant challenges.