studyofelectroosmosisinhightemperatureelectrophoretic.docVIP

Study of Electroosmosis in High Temperature Electrophoretic Measurements in Aqueous Solutions Victor Rodriguez-Santiago Abstract The purpose of this study was to qualitatively and quantitatively study the electroosmotic effect in capillary electrophoresis. By obtaining electroosmotic data, the available electrophoretic data can be corrected, and more reliable ζ-potential data can be obtained. To simulate the electroosmotic effect, the finite element method software COMSOL? was used. The system was studied as a function of pH and temperature. Experimental electrophoretic data was used for correction using the modeling results. Preliminary results indicate that the data from the simulation is being underestimated by as much as one order of magnitude as compared to the available analytical solution. The problem needs further study. 1. Literature Review When materials come in contact with aqueous solutions their surface become electrically charged; this surface charge creates what is called the electrical double layer (EDL). Among the possible reasons for the EDL formation we can mention specific adsorption of charged ionic species and protolysis of dissociable groups on the surface [1]. The EDL is conceptualized as a layer of tightly bounded (immobile) species followed by a layer of loosely bounded (diffused) species [2]. The electric potential at the boundary of the diffused layer and the bulk of the solution (shear plane) is known as the zeta potential (ζ-potential) [3]. Consequently, the EDL (and therefore the ζ-potential) is responsible for many of the properties and interactions of charged species in aqueous solutions. Many techniques have been developed by taking advantage of electrokinetic phenomena such as electrophoresis and electroosmosis. First, electrophoresis is one of the electrokinetic phenomena in which charged particles (e.g., ions, molecules, etc) move under the influence of an applied electric field [4]. Variations of electrophoretic me