Polymer Science Faculty Research

Title

Thermal Behavior of Long-Chain Alcohols on Sapphire Substrate

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Summer 5-26-2015

Abstract

Structures of amphiphilic molecules at the liquid/solid and solid/solid interfaces are important in understanding lubrication, colloid stabilization, chromatography, and nucleation. Here, we have used interface-sensitive sum frequency generation (SFG) spectroscopy to characterize the interfacial structures of long-chain alcohols above and below the bulk melting temperature (Tm). The melting temperature of the ordered hexadecanol monolayer was measured to be around 30 °C above the bulk Tm, consistent with the transition temperature reported using X-ray reflectivity [ Phys. Rev. Lett. 2011, 106, 137801]. The disruption of hydrogen bonds between the sapphire and the alcohol hydroxyl groups was directly measured as a function of temperature. The strength of this hydrogen-bonding interaction, which explained the monolayer thermal stability above Tm, was calculated using the Badger–Bauer equation. Below Tm, the ordered self-assembled monolayer influenced the structure of the interfacial crystalline layer, and the transition from the ordered monolayer to the bulk crystalline phases (α rotator phase, β crystalline phase, and γ crystalline phase) resulted in packing frustrations at the interface.

Publication Title

Langmuir

Volume

31

Issue

23

First Page

6306

Last Page

6313

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