Electrostatic-Field-Induced Collapse of Nanobubbles in Nanochannels

The adsorbed nanobubbles inside the nanochannels can
cause fluid
transport blockages, which will obviously degrade the nanodevice performance
and reduce the lifetime. However, due to small-scale effects, the
removal of nanobubbles is a huge challenge at the nanoscale. Herein,
molecular dynamics simulations are carried out to study the effect
of the electrostatic field on underwater nitrogen nanobubbles confined
in nanochannels. It is found that the nanobubbles will collapse under
an appropriate electrostatic field, thereby unblocking the transport
of water in the nanochannels. The formation of ordered water structures
induced by electrostatic fields plays an important role in the removal
of nanobubbles from the nanochannels. Our findings provide a convenient,
controllable, and remote way to address the blockage problem of nanobubbles
in nanochannels, which may have potential applications in improving
the performance of fuel cells.