CHM 271

COLLOID & SURFACE

CHEMISTRY
CHAPTER 7

7.1 Definitions of colloid, true solution and suspension system

7.2 Types of colloid and uses
7.3 Lyophilic and lyophobic sols
7.3.1 Stability of lyophobic sols
7.3.2 Preparation of lyophilic and lyophobic sols (dispersion and
condensation methods)
7.3.3 Properties of colloids – Brownian, dialysis, Tyndall effect,
electric double layer, electrophoresis, electro-osmosis & coagulation
7.4 Adsorption
7.4.1 Adsorption phenomenon
7.4.2 Types of adsorption (Differences of chemical adsorption and
physical adsorption)
7.4.3 Types of adsorption isotherm (introductory and without
calculation)
– Langmuir and Freundlich
– Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (B.E.T)
Nurul Amni Abdullah
Faculty of Applied Sciences
amni2468@uitm.edu.my
 Lesson Outcomes
At this end of this topic, the students should be able to:

❑ Define : colloid, coarse suspension, true solution.

❑ Differentiate between the three (3) types of dispersion system
❑ Identify the dispersed phase and dispersion medium of
colloidal dispersions
❑ Give examples for various types of disperse systems
❑ Define sol
❑ Distinguish between lyophobic sol and lyophilic sol
(properties)
❑ Describe the preparation method of lyophobic and lyophilic
sols
❑ Describe the properties of colloids: Brownian, dialysis,
Tyndall effect, electrical double layer, electrophoresis, electro-
osmosis & coagulation

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 Dispersion
systems

Coarse Colloidal True

Suspension Dispersion Solution

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 ▪ A colloid is a dispersion of particles of one substance (the
dispersed phase) throughout a dispersion medium made of
another substance.
▪ Colloids are distinguished from another form of suspension by the
size of the dispersed phase particle

Colloid System

Dispersed phase Dispersion medium

Dispersed phase
Dispersion medium
(distributed particle
(Continuous phase)
phase)

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 Colloidal particles are any substances
❑ the solute particles have diameter of the order of 1-100 nm (10Å-
10000Å) / between 10-7 and 10-9 m.
❑ Smaller that coarse (can be seen under microscope, will settle
under the action of gravity)
❑ Colloidal solutions are generally referred as sols
❑ if the dispersion medium is water called hydrosol/aquasol
❑ If more concentrated colloidal solution it can be referred as gels or
hydrogels if aqueous
❑ Filterable particles but larger than atoms and small molecules,
and they pass the pore of the ordinary filters
❑ Invisible in ordinary microscope
❑ E.g: milk, blood, honey, smoke, ink, gum, starch solution etc

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True solution
❑ A true solution is a homogeneous solution in which the solute
particles have diameters less than 10-9 m. i.e., the solute particles
are of molecular dimensions.
❑ The particles are invisible even under powerful microscopes.
❑ E.g: sodium chloride in water is a true solution,
❑ Particles of true solution cannot be filtered through filter paper
and are not visible to naked eye

Coarse Suspension

❑ A suspension is a heterogeneous mixture in which one or more

components have a particle size greater than 10-7 m.
❑ Very often these particles are visible to the naked eye.
❑ E.g: sand in water, sodium chloride in benzene, turmeric in water
etc.

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 System Characteristic Coarse suspension Colloidal dispersion True solution
Particle diameter (m) >10-7 (>100nm) 10-7 – 10-9 (1- 100 nm) 10-9 (0.1 – 1 nm)
Particle size Large particles Small molecules, particles Ions and small molecules
Stability NOT stable (easily settle out Less stable Stable under gravity
of water)
Type of system Heterogeneous Heterogeneous Homogenous mixture
Opacity Opaque Translucent Transparent
Effect No Tyndall effect Tyndall effect No Tyndall effect
Filtration Can be filtered Cannot be filtered diffuse very Cannot be filtered using
Do not diffuse slowly filter paper
Visibility Invisible to naked eye not
Easily visible in electron Invisible to naked eye. Visible
visible under powerful
microscope under powerful microscope
microscope
Precipitation Do not precipitate a period of
Precipitate over a period of Do not precipitate/ sink
time due to high kinetic energy
time due to strong over a period of time due to
Settle down under high
gravitational force high kinetic energy
centrifugation

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1. Foam
2. Solid foam
3. Liquid Aerosol
4. Emulsions
5. Gels
6. Solid Aerosol
7. Sol (Colloidal suspension)
8. Solid sol (Solid suspension)

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In colloidal solution :

• Particles are dispersed or spread through out

the dispersion medium such as water.

• The size of colloid particles is intermediate

between the coarse suspension and ordinary
solution.

• The size of particles is small where random

collisions keep them dispersed throughout the
dispersion medium and neither sinks to the
bottom nor dissolves in the solvent.

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Dispersion Dispersed phase Name Examples
medium
Gas Liquid Liquid Aerosol Insecticide spray, Liquid sprays, mist,
Fog, cloud

Solid Solid Aerosol Smoke, dust , smog, auto exhaust

Liquid Gas Foam Foam on soap solution, bubbles on

drink, fire extinguisher foam, whipped
cream, shaving lather
Liquid (fat) Liquid (water) Emulsion Milk (O/W), mayonnaise, cosmetic
lotion, salad dressings
Solid Sol Paint, toothpaste, blood, starch, custard,
pigmented ink, detergent, latex, mud

Solid Gas Solid foam Aerogel, Ice cream, pumice,

marshmallow, Styrofoam, insulation,
cushion, sponge
Liquid Solid emulsion Opal, pearl, silica gel, butter, cheese,
jellies, agar, pudding

Solid Solid sol Pigmented plastics, alloy, glass,

gemstones, reinforced rubber
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 13

A sol is a disperse system which the dispersed

particles (solutes) is solid and the dispersion
medium (solvent) is liquid.
 Two types of sol
 Lyophilic sol (solvent loving)

 Lyophobic sol (solvent hating)

 If water (aqueous) is dispersion medium,

terms
 Hydrophobic colloid (water hating)

 Hydrophilic colloid (water loving) 13

 Lyophilic sols and Lyophobic Sols
Lyophilic sol
1. ‘solvent loving’- strong intermolecular
interaction between dispersed phase and
dispersing medium because of their similar
properties (sol is stable)
- Have a great affinity for the solvent
2. If dispersed substance and dispersing
medium are separated, sol can be
reproduced by mixing the two together
-readily solvated (combined chemically/physically
with the solvent)
Lyophobic sol
1. ‘solvent hating’- little or no interaction
between dispersed substance and
dispersing medium because the particles
are electrically charged and scattered
throughout the liquid phase
- The particle resist solvation and dispersion in
the solvent
2. On condensing and freezing, the solid
produced cannot back to sol
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 Lyophilic sols
3. Are not precipitated by relatively small
amounts of electrolyte (may be salted
out by a large amount of electrolyte)
4. Generally have higher viscosity and
lower surface tension than the
dispersion medium
5. Thermodynamically stable colloidal
dispersion
-due to strong attractive forces between the
particles and the dispersion medium
(H-bonding)
-not easily coagulated
6. E.g: gum, starch, proteins, gelatine in
water, jelly in water, rubber
Lyophobic sols
3. Are precipitated by relatively small
amounts of electrolyte
4. Have viscosity and surface tension
similar to those of dispersion medium
5. Thermodynamically unstable
-colloidal dispersion can be formed with
mechanical energy input (mixer,
colloid mill & ultrasound generator)
- Stability is due to the charged particles &
the like particles repel each other –
coagulation can be avoided
6. E.g: colloidal metals, gold, silver,
metallic sulphide and hydroxides,
other inorganic colloids, sulfur sols
- emulsions, foams, particle suspensions
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 Gel Emulsion

✓ Gel is semi-solid form of a lyophilic ✓ Colloidal dispersion in which a

sol in which the dispersion medium liquid is dispersed in a continuous
particles has been absorbed by sol liquid phase of different
particle composition with the presence of
✓ It appears like a solid but easily emulsifying agent (a substance that
deformed stabilizes an emulsion)
✓ Gel retains its characteristic ✓ One of the liquid is aqueous while
shape the other is hydrocarbon/oil
✓ Uses: jelly candies, toothpaste ✓ Uses: detergent, soap, milk,
gel, gel soap and etc. mayonnaise

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O/W emulsion
Has a creamy texture
Mixes readily with a liquid, which
is miscible with water and readily
colored with dye soluble in water
Higher electrical conductivity
Eg; Milk, mayonnaise,
W/O emulsion
Feels greasy
Mixes readily with oil and readily
coloured with dye soluble in oil
Lower electrical conductivity than
O/W emulsion
Eg; Margarine, butter

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  The formation of colloid material involves two mechanisms
1. Degradation of bulk matter to the size required →
powderization / dispersion method
2. Aggregation of small molecules / ions → condensation
process

Coarse system Micro-molecular

Colloidal system
system

Dispersion Condensation
method method
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 Lyophobic Sols

Dispersion Condensation
method method
Mechanical
grinding
Arc- Bredig Chemical Change of
method reaction solvent
Peptisation
Hydrolysis
method
Redox reaction
Double
Displacement
Reduction
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•The substance to be dispersed is suspended in the dispersion medium
and then ground to finer state by mechanical means
•Eg: Whipping of curd into Lassi, beating the white of an white egg

bigger size particle (suspension) change into smaller sized colloid

Mechanical grinding
Through industry i.e grinding machine with metal plates spinning
at high resolution and in opposite direction
Solid powder (dispersed substances) and liquid are mixed in the
machine. Colloid particles are produced and disperse in
dispersing medium
This method can be used to produce graphite colloid (lubricant)
and printing ink

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▪ Stabilization of particles
already existing in colloidal
size
▪ A process of dispersing
precipitates to form colloid
and also stabilising colloid by
adding electrolyte
▪ Electrically charged particles
are then separated from
precipitates as colloidal
particles
▪ The added substance called
‘peptisation agent’

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•Method employed for preparing the
colloidal sol of gold, silver, copper, Pt
etc
• Suitable current : 50-100 volt and
5-10 ampere
• 2 rods drawn out of the metal are
dipped in conductivity water to
which a small quantity of alkali
hydroxide has been added and an
electric struck between them
• Arc heat would vapourised some of
the gold electrodes and the gold
vapour then dispersed into the
alkaline medium to form sol • The addition of alkali to the
• The vessel containing the water may conductivity water helps to get
be surrounded by a freezing mixture more stable colloidal solution
if necessary which can be freed from
particles of non colloidal size by
filtration 22
•If a true solution of substance K in solvent X is added to another
liquid Y which is miscible with solvent X but in which K is very
slightly or insoluble, the substance K separates out to form
particles of colloidal size. This is due to decrease in solubility of K
in the presence of liquid Y

•Examples:
- A few drop of ethanol solution of oleic acid are stirred with 100ml
of distilled water.
- Acid insoluble in water and form milky-looking suspension
- Adding water to sulfur-ethanol solution cause the formation of
colloidal sulphur due to sulphur is less soluble in water.
(sulphur is slightly soluble in ethanol, but practically insoluble in water. A
saturated solution of sulphur in ethanol, when poured into water, forms a
sulphur sol owing to decrease in solubility. The solvent used must be
miscible with water.)
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 smaller size particle condensed to form colloidal size particles
Hydrolysis
• Colloidal form when the substance reacts with water or known as hydrolysis process
• Hydrolysis is preparation of oxides or hydroxide sol. e.g. Fe(OH)3 sol
• A few cm3 of FeCl3 solution (30% concentrated) is added to water at 80 C-reddish brown
colour sol is produced

FeCl3 (aq) + 3H20 (liq) Fe(OH)3 (sol) + 3HCl

Oxidation
• Reaction involving oxidizing agent
• Redox: H2S is bubbled through dilute solution of SO2, a yellow sol is produced
2H2S(g) + SO2 (g) 2H2O(liq) + 3S (yellow sol)

• Double displacement : AgCl sol can be prepared by adding dilute solution of AgNO3
with dilute solution of NaCl
AgNO3 + NaCl AgCl (sol) + NaNO3

Reduction
• Reaction involving reducing agent
• Reduction (reduction of metal sol) , E.g. Ag sol
a. Ammonia solution is added to 5 cm3 of AgNO3 1% solution
b. The mixture is shaken until all Ag2O (s) is dissolved again
c. Dilute the mixture in 95 cm3 H2O
d. Add 0.5 cm3 of tannin solution
e. Ag sol, light brown in colour is produced gold electrodes immersed in the
dispersing medium (dilute water and alkali) 24
 Optical Properties
• Colloidal particles can be observed / detected using the
ultra-microscope microscope

light Colloidal solution

(sol)

• The sol is brightly illuminated laterally and is observed by a

microscopes in a direction at right angles to the direction of
illumination
• The colloidal particles scatter the light and can be
recognized as points of light against a dark background
• The particles in hydrophobic sol are easily detected, those of
hydrophilic sols (e.g. starch solution) much less easily and
those of true solution not at all. 25
 Tyndall Effect
▪ When a beam of light is thrown against a colloidal solution, the path
of the beam is illuminated as a result of the scattering of light by the
particles and a blue cone known as Tyndall cone is observed
▪ Use the Tyndall effect to differentiate between a true solution and a
suspension/ colloid
▪ True solution - a homogeneous mixture
▪ no light scattering due to ions and molecules are too small to
scatter visible light
▪ Suspension - particles are suspended in water
▪ the particles are too large to be dissolved, and so are large
enough to scatter light.
The Tyndall effect is caused by
reflection of light by very small
particles in suspension in a
transparent medium due to the size
& number of particle present. For
any particle size. Tyndall effect will 26
increase linearly with concentration 26
 Brownian Movement
▪ Brownian movement /motion
▪ Result of random collision with the molecules of the
suspending medium, other particles and the walls of
the containing vessel
▪ Each particles pursues a complicated and irregular
zigzag pathway
▪ Kinetic theory → the molecules of any gas or liquid are
continuous, irregular motion, and this motion that
determines the temperature of the of liquid.
▪ The higher the temperature, the more vigorous is the
movement of the molecules

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 Electrical Properties
 Electrical properties → due to the presence of a charge
 When exposed to an electrical potential, colloids can be
forced to migrate toward the electrode of opposite charge.
• If inert electrodes are put into a lyophobic sols and
potential difference is applied across them, it is found that
the colloid particles will migrate towards one of the
electrodes. This process is known as ‘electrophoresis’ and
it shows that the lyophobic sol are electrically charged
• Colloid positively charged- metallic hydroxides
• Colloids negatively charged- metallic sulphides , metals,
organic colloids
• The colloids particles acquired charges through adsorption
of the anion/cation present in the dispersion medium
during the preparation process
• Colloid will be negatively charged by adsorption of the
anions in the medium

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Electrical Properties
▪ The presence of a charge on colloidal particle gives them
electrical properties
▪ When exposed to an electrical potential, colloids can be
forced to migrate toward the electrode of opposite charge.
▪ Electrophoresis
▪ The movement of disperse phase towards the electrode

▪ Electro-osmosis
▪ The movement of dispersing medium under the influence of
electrical field

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▪ Particle of a colloidal solution
possess either positive or negative
charge
▪ If a colloidal solution is placed in a
U-tube and potential difference
applied at its two ends, the
charged particles are seen to move
towards the opposite electrode
▪ This movement of the charged
particles under the influence of an
electric field is known as
electrophoresis

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 Coagulation of Colloids
• Lyophobic sols can be forced to precipitate the colloid by
addition of electrolyte
• The colloid is precipitated by an ion of opposite charge
to its own
• Lyophilic sol are much more stable towards added
electrolyte. They are usually not precipitated by the
addition of small amount of electrolyte
• The irreversible collapse of the colloidal particles into
bulk phase and settles as precipitate
• Addition of electrolytes causes the precipitation of the
colloidal particles because the charged ions of the
electrolyte neutralize the charge on colloidal particles

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 Dialysis
▪ This is a process of removing electrolytes (crystalloids)
from sols using a colloidal/cellophane membrane.
▪ The electrolytes can pass through the membrane, but the
colloid cannot.

Colloidal solution
membrane

water
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•Purification is required to avoid precipitation/ coagulation
- A form of filtration in which the pore size of the
parchment/cellophane membrane is small enough for colloidal
particles to be held back while ions and small molecules of a true
solution pass through.
•Sol is put in a series of tubes
with different kinds of synthetic
resin membranes on each side
•When electrical supply is
applied, the unwanted ions are
attracted through the
membranes to one or other of
the electrodes
•So that, the electrolytes can
pass through the membrane
but not the colloid
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