Filtration of nanosized particles with different shape on oil coated fibres

In our previous work it has been shown that perfectly spherical polystyrene latex (PSL) particles have higher filtration efficiency compared to cubic magnesium oxide (MgO) particles of the same electrical mobility as PSL particles. This disparity was ascribed to the different nature of motion of the spherical and cubic particles along the fibre surface, following the initial collision. After touching the fibre surface and before coming to rest, the spherical particles could either slide or roll compared to the cubic ones, which could slide or tumble. During tumbling, the area of contact between the particle and the fibre changes significantly, thus affecting the bounce probability, whilst for the spheres, the area of contact remains the same for any point of particle trajectory. In this project, the polypropylene filter was coated with a thin layer of mineral oil that was used to absorb the energy and, respectively, to minimize particle motion along the fibre after collision. The filtration efficiency of spherical PSL, and cubic MgO particles was measured in the size range of 50–300 nm, for filtration velocity of 10 and 20 cm/s. It was found that, regardless of shape, both particle types have very similar filtration efficiency. The theoretical predictions are in good agreement with our experimental results. Therefore, the conclusion can be drawn that the oil coating minimizes the amount of particle motion along the fibre after initial collision, making results for all particle shapes similar.