Effects of Charge

Conclusions

• For small, spherical particles, adhesion appears to be dominated by van der Waals interactions.
• As the particles become bigger or more irregular, electrostatics become more important.
• Van der Waals interactions can be reduced, even for small, spherical particles, to the point where electrostatic forces can become dominant.
• The electric charge contribution increases rapidly with increasing charge and the presence of neighboring particles.
• These results hold for macroscopic systems as well as microscopic ones.
• Electrostatic interactions are long-range.
• JKR theory should be extended to allow for long-range interactions.