The Research Group of Daniel Blankschtein performs research in the area of Colloid and Interface Science.

A broad theoretical and experimental research program in Colloid and Interface Science is being developed. Systems under study include micellar (surfactant-water) solutions, micellar solutions with solubilized hydrophobic solutes including pharmaceutically relevant drugs, solutions of polymers and block copolymers, and polymer-biomolecule, surfactant-biomolecule, and polymer-surfactant systems. The research program emphasizes the essential interplay between theory, experiment, and practical applications.

The field of Colloid and Interface Science is becoming increasingly important to a large number of industrial, environmental, biotechnological, and biomedical applications where chemical engineers can play a pivotal role. These applications include detergency, emulsification, and wetting; adhesives, coatings, and thin films; petrochemical processes; food, paint, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and photographic technologies; controlled-release of active ingredients in pharmaceuticals and consumer products; removal of trace contaminants from water sources; bioseparations; and biomedical applications including skin irritation, transdermal drug delivery, and cholesterol metabolism and transport in the human body.

The theoretical component of our research involves the use of thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, liquid-state theory, density-functional theory, mean-field theory, Monte-Carlo and molecular-dynamics simulations, scaling theory, transport phenomena, kinetics, and colloid and interface science.

The experimental component of our research involves use of state of the art techniques for the characterization of structured fluids. These include particle-size determination using static and dynamic light scattering, surface and interfacial tension measurements, phase diagram determination and characterization, viscosity determination, calorimetry, and other physical and analytical techniques.

Current research includes:

• Molecular-thermodynamic modeling of the bulk and interfacial behavior of structured fluids.
• Computer simulations of self-assembling systems.
• Development of user-friendly computer programs to predict bulk solution properties and interfacial properties of surfactant systems.
• Fundamental investigation of the equilibrium and kinetics of surfactant adsorption at interfaces.
• Liquid-state and density-functional theories of structured fluids.
• Controlled-release methodologies applied to pharmaceuticals and consumer products.
• Novel environmental and biological separations using two-phase aqueous surfactant and polymer systems, and aqueous micellar-gel systems.
• Biomedical aspects of structured fluids, including enhanced transdermal drug delivery using ultrasound and chemical enhancers, and surfactant-induced skin irritation.