Dynamics of Multi‐component Fluids near Interfaces

Dr. Sepideh Razavi
The University of Oklahoma

Seminar Abstract: Presence of complex solutions composed of fluids, ions, surfactant molecules, and colloidal particles is commonplace in problems relevant to materials discovery and manufacturing. Such multicomponent fluidic systems are often confined by interfaces in processes associated with the water-energy nexus as well, for example, in membrane separations and subsurface energy recovery and storage. To make matters more intricate, fluid interfaces are not static and are constantly subject to external disturbances such as thermal gradients, imposed stresses, and changes in composition. Given the environmental and economic impact of the subject matter, it is important to advance our fundamental quantitative understanding of the complex interfacial systems just summarized, with the goal of ultimately predicting and controlling their behavior in relevant hightech applications. In this presentation, I will review recent findings in our group on how particle attributes such as wettability and surface anisotropy influence the stability and rheology of fluid interfaces. I will discuss the impact of particle surface properties on the interfacial microstructure and flow behavior, and their connection to the performance in resulting Pickering foams.

Biography: Sepideh Razavi is an Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering at University of Oklahoma (OU). Prior to joining OU in 2018, she received postdoctoral training in Prof. Michael Solomon’s group at University of Michigan (2015-2017) and a Ph.D. degree in Chemical Engineering from the City College of New York (2010-2015) under the supervision of Prof. Ilona Kretzschmar. She is a recipient of the ACS-PRF Doctoral New Investigator award (2020), the NSF CAREER award (2022), and the Mallinson Early Career Professorship (2024). Her research efforts are focused on understanding and engineering the behavior of multicomponent fluidic systems and complex interfaces to address the basic research needs faced by the energy, environment, and sustainability
sectors.