Adsorption Behaviour of Tween 85 on Nano-Aluminium Particles in Aluminium/JP-10 Suspensions

A stability analyser and a rheometer were used to study the effects of Tween 85 (polyoxyethylene sorbitan trioleate) on the dispersion properties of nano-aluminium/JP-10 (exo-tetrahydrodicyclopentadiene) suspensions. Results show that the addition of Tween 85 can effectively improve the stability of two-phase suspensions by hindering particle aggregation and reduce the viscosity of a system. The surface characteristics of the zeta potential and the contact angle were measured. The dispersion of the suspensions was improved by Tween 85 mainly by enhancing the steric hindrance of particles. The adsorbed particles obtained in JP-10 with different Tween 85 concentrations were analysed via scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy to explore the adsorption behaviour of Tween 85 molecules on the surface of aluminium particles and to confirm that Tween 85 formed an adsorption layer on the particle surface. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated that the adsorption amount of Tween 85 increased with its concentration in JP-10. The roughness analysis of the surface of adsorbed particles was measured via atomic force microscopy to characterise the thickness of the adsorption layer. The results showed that Tween 85 molecules formed an irregular adsorption layer on the particle surface, and an increase in the concentration of Tween 85 in JP-10 increased the thickness of the adsorption layer.