Highly Efficient Active Colloids Driven by Galvanic Exchange Reactions

Micromotors are propelled by a variety of chemical reactions, with most of them being of catalytic nature. There are, however, systems based on redox reactions, which show clear benefits for efficiency. Here, we broaden the spectrum of suitable reactions to galvanic exchange processes, or an electrochemical replacement of a solid metal layer with dissolved ionic species of a more noble metal. We study the details of motility and the influence of different reaction parameters to conclude that these galvanophoretic processes circumvent several steps that lose efficiency in catalytic micromotors. Furthermore, we investigate the chemical process, the charge, and flow conditions that lead to this highly efficient new type of active motility. Toward a better understanding of the underlying processes, we propose an electrokinetic model that we numerically solve via finite elements.

Automated summary

The study expands the range of suitable reactions for micromotors by exploring galvanic exchange processes, resulting in a highly efficient new type of active motility. An electrokinetic model is proposed to better understand the underlying processes involved in micromotor propulsion.