Study and Investigation of behavior of Janus particles in different concentration KCl electrolytes mixed with glycerol

Previously, it has been demonstrated that in the presence of an electric field metallodielectric Janus particles exhibit distinct forward (dielectric hemisphere forward) and backward (metallic hemisphere facing forward) motion when subjected to low and high frequencies respectively. This behavior is significantly influenced by the concentration of potassium chloride (KCl) in the suspending solution, which affects the velocity magnitude and crossover frequency (where particles switch from forward to backward motion).

The addition of glycerol to the KCl electrolyte addresses the persistent issue of bubble formation within microfluidic chips. Due to the small scale of these devices, bubble formation can easily cause blockages that are difficult to remove. One effective strategy to minimize or eliminate bubble formation is the selection of fluids with very low gas solubility. Glycerol, known for its high viscosity and compact molecular structure, reduces the solubility and movement of gas molecules, thereby preventing bubble formation. Moreover, glycerol helps in preventing particles from sticking to the walls of the microfluidic channels.

In our study, we prepared a mixture consisting of 0.55 weight fraction of glycerol with KCl electrolytes of varying concentration and measure the mobility of the Janus particles under an AC electric field. It is shown that in accordance with previous work, the KCl electrolyte affects both the velocity magnitude and frequency dispersion of the Janus particles. At the same time, adhesion to the substrate and bubble formation are minimized.