SURFACTANTS AND LIPIDS
We use a variety of simulations, including atomistic and coarse-grained molecular dynamics and mesoscopic simulations, to study the flow behavior and structure of surfactant solutions. We combine experimental linear and nonlinear rheology with modeling to better understand the underlying physics and microstructure that govern the macroscopic flow behavior of surfactant solutions. Additionally, we study interactions in mixed polymer and surfactant solutions and the thermodynamics of surfactants at interfaces.
Students
Grace Tan
Alumni
Example project
A fast “pointer” simulation method is developed in Larson’s group that extends the model of Cates and coworkers for the rheology of entangled wormlike micelles, which is suitable for predicting the rheological behavior and extracting the micellar parameters for experimental wormlike micellar solutions. Development of this method was support by NSF under grants CBET-0853662 and DMR 0906587.