COLLOIDS

Comes from the Greek words kola meaning

glue and iodos meaning appearance.
Colloidal systems may appear in all sorts of
forms, from apparently homogeneous solutions
to cloudy liquids, smokes, mists and even jellies.
Colloidal system (also called a colloidal solution
or a colloidal solution or a colloidal suspension).
Composed of two phases of matters, the
dispersed phase and the continuous phase
(dispersion medium) they are intermediate
class between suspension and solution.
Colloid particles (dispersed phase) are larger
than the single atom, ion, or molecule of a
solution and they are smaller than the particles
of suspensions, which can be seen through a
microscope.
Comparison of Solutions, Colloids, and Suspension
Solutions Colloids Suspensions
*Particle size < 1
nm
*Do not settle
out
*Pass un-
changed through
ordinary paper
*Pass un-
changed through
membrane
*Do not scatter
light
*Affect
colligative
properties
*Particle size >
1nm but < 100
nm
*Do not settle
out
*Pass
unchanged
through ordinary
filter paper
*Separated by a
membrane
*Scatter light
*Do not affect
colligative
properties
*Particle size
>100 nm
*Settle out on
standing
*Separated by
ordinary filter
paper
*Separated by a
membrane
*Scatter light
*Do not affect
colligative
properties

Types of Colloids
* Aerosol are suspensions of liquid or solid particles in
a gas.
Dispersed particles: liquid Dispersing medium: gas
Special name: liquid aerosol
Ex.: Fog, Spray paint artificial aerosol in which the pain
is dispersed in gas (the propellant) formed by rapid
evaporation of a liquid in the can
Dispersed particle: solid Dispersing medium: solid
Special name: solid aerosol
Ex.: smoke minute solid particles are suspended in air
*Foams are colloidal dispersions of gas bubbles in
liquids (liquid foam) or solids (solid foam).
Dispersed particles: gas dispersing medium: liquid
Special name: liquid foam
Ex.: whipped cream, shaving cream, the froth on a glass
of beer, meringue
Dispersed particles: gas dispersing medium: solid
Special name: solid foam
Ex.: polystyrene, Styrofoam, pumice, and yeast bread
*Emulsions is a colloidal dispersion of a liquid in
either a liquid or a solid.
-some emulsions may contain more than one dispersed
phase; milk,, contains both protein casein and particles
of fat (cream).
-require an addition of emulsifying agent or peptizing
agent to form stable emulsion.
Dispersed particles: liquid dispersing medium: liquid
Ex.: mayonnaise oil and vinegar; two immiscible
liquids, remained suspended in one another if beaten
well with egg yolk, ointments and creams used in
medicines and cosmetics.
*Sol is a solid dispersed in either a solid or a liquid.
Dispersed particles: solid dispersing medium: liquid
Special name: liquid sol
Ex.: paint, solution of soap, particles of some metals,
such as gold or zinc, may be suspended in water to form
sol, and even bacteria of colloidal dimensions, when
suspended in water, show colloidal properties.
Dispersed particles: solid dispersing medium: solid
Special name: solid sol
Ex.: stained glass colored, solid particles are
suspended in glass
Opal is a solid sol that has no crystalline structure like
other gemstone.
*Gel is a colloidal system in which the dispersed phase
consists of fibrous, interwoven particles called fibrils
which exert a marked effect on the physical properties
of the dispersing medium.
Ex.: gelatin dessert made from the skin and bones of
animals and flavoring with sweeteners.
-some gels can also be liquefied by shaking or other
forms of agitation but will retain to the gelatinous state
on standing known as thixotropy.
Ex. Some paints and quick sand.

Classification According to Affinity between Phases
*Lyophilic or solvent - loving if the dispersing medium
is water, the term is changed to hydrophilic.
*Lyophobic or solvent - fearing - hydrophobic if water is
the dispersing medium.
- to form colloidal dispersions of such substances, it is
frequently or even usually necessary to add a third
substance called an emulsifier or peptizing agents
called surfactants.






Properties of Colloids

TYNDALL EFFECT
When a beam of light is made to pass through a colloid,
it is scattered by the colloidal particles which appear as
tiny specks of light. This light scattering is called the
Tyndall effect. No such scattering is observed with
ordinary solutions because the solute molecules are too
small to interact with visible light. Colloidal particles
can scatter light because they are large enough to catch
light and reflect it back. The ability of a mixture to
scatter light is one way of distinguishing colloids from
solutions. Manifestations of Tyndall effect are observed
every day in nature. For instance, when we wake up on
a sunny morning, our senses are awakened by sunlight
scattered by dust or smoke in the air. Light scattering is
often used in determining particle size. The different
colors that we see are not due to pigments but rather to
the scattering of light by colloidal substances in the iris.
Green, brown, and black are due to a combination of
light scattering and the presence of yellowish-brown
pigment in front of the iris, causing selective absorption
of light.
- Taken after John Tyndall, a British physicist who
studied this effect.

BROWNIAN MOTION
The motion of particles floating in air is random and
almost in a zigzag fashion. This interesting property of
colloids, called Brownian motion, is due to the constant
and continuous collision of colloidal particles against
each other. This is also the reason why colloidal
particles do not settle on standing. The rate of settling
of particles is dependent on the following:
a. size of the colloidal particles
b. gravitational force acting on the colloidal particles
c. viscosity of the medium (ability to resist flow)
Water and gasoline mixture has low viscosity as
compared to syrup and oil mixture which has high
viscosity. The above factors are also useful in identifying
viruses, proteins, plastics and other macromolecules.
- Named in the honor of Robert Brown, a
biologist who first noticed it while observing the
motion of particles in a suspension of pollen
grains in water.

ADSORPTION
How is adsorption different from absorption? If you
place a few drops of water onto a cotton ball, the water
droplets are immediately soaked up by the cotton. This
is absorption.
On the other hand, adsorption is when you use the
cotton ball against the chalkboard. Observe closely
what happens to the cotton. Chalk particles and dust
adhered to the surface. This phenomenon is called
adsorption. Physical and/or chemical forces may be
involved in adsorption. One property of colloidal
particles is that they exhibit adsorption. This is due to
the large surface areas of colloidal particles. This
interesting property makes colloids very useful in
everyday life. For example, charcoal is used to remove
the bad odor produced by vapors of food in the
refrigerator. The network of pores in the charcoal
provides extensive surface area that adsorbs the vapors.
The adsorptive ability of colloids is used in dyeing
fabrics, in the use of aluminum hydroxide in purifying
water, in the use of activated carbon in refining sugar
and electroplating solutions, and in the use of bone
black in gas masks to remove toxic gases in the air.

ELECTRIC CHARGE EFFECT
A colloid may allow ions to be adsorbed on its surface,
thereby acquiring an electrical charge. The electrical
charge may either be positive or negative. This
electrical charge will prevent the particles from
clumping together or coagulating.
What causes the colloidal particles to carry a charge?
Colloidal particles have high adsorptive capacity. Thus,
particles are adsorbed on their surface ions from water
or from solutions of electrolytes. Such molecules are
called surfactants, because they tend to adsorb at the
surface of a substance that is in contact with the
solution that contains them. Classic examples of
surfactants are soap and detergents. They have both
hydrophobic (water fearing which refers to nonpolar
part of molecule not attracted to water) and hydrophilic
(water loving which refers to polar part of molecule
attracted to water) groups in their molecular structure.
The nonpolar part of the soap molecule dissolves
grease, while the polar ends dissolve in water. The net
result is that the grease/soap complex is water soluble
and gets washed away. This process is called
emulsification. You can see it working if you add soap
to some oil-and-vinegar salad dressing. The vinegar
layer of the dressing gets cloudy because the soap has
surrounded little droplets of oil and prevents them from
rejoining the oil layer.