Surface modification of calcium carbonate nanoparticles by fluorosurfactant

In this study, the effect of adsorption behavior of anionic fluorinated surfactant (Zonyl TBS) on the wetting property of CaCO3 substrate was investigated. In a low surfactant concentration region, the CaCO3 surface becomes more hydrophobic with an increase in surfactant concentration due to monolayer adsorption of surfactant molecules on the solid surface. However, further increase in surfactant concentration after the formation of a monolayer saturated with surfactant molecules produced a reverse change from hydrophobic to hydrophilic due to bilayer formation of surfactant molecules on the CaCO3 surface. Foam stability test for aqueous solutions containing 1 wt% of CaCO3 nanoparticles indicated that ultrastable foam was observed at 1.70 x 10(-1) wt% of Zonyl TBS concentration where the contact angle measured through the aqueous phase was found to be 93.6 +/- 0.3 degrees. This result indicated that CaCO3 nanoparticle treated by low concentration of fluorosurfactant Zonyl TBS is a strong candidate for the potential applicability as a foam stabilizer.