Investigating the Formation Mechanisms of Particle Stabilised Emulsions Using SESANS

Understanding emulsion formation under non-equilibrium conditions is a key challenge in soft matter science. While ultrasonic agitation is widely used to produce emulsions, little is known about how droplet structure and organisation evolve in real time during processing. This proposal aims to establish a robust baseline for particle-stabilised emulsions using spin-echo small-angle neutron scattering (SESANS), which uniquely probes structural correlations in the 1–20 μm range—critical for capturing droplet organisation, flocculation, and hierarchical structure. Using well-characterised dodecane-in-water emulsions stabilised by either pure or azobenzene-functionalised silica, we will explore how particle concentration and time affect emulsion stability and structure. These foundational measurements are essential for commissioning a new in-situ ultrasound sample environment under development for ISIS beamlines, enabling future time-resolved studies. LARMOR’s SESANS mode is ideally suited to this work, and the proposed experiments will provide essential reference data for the next generation of non-equilibrium soft matter research.