Micro/Nano Emulsions: Smart Colloids for Multiple Applications

Dear Colleagues,

Microemulsions are continuously attracting the interest of researchers due to their unique properties, such as ultralow interfacial tension between oil and water phases, large interfacial area, thermodynamic stability, and ability to solubilize otherwise immiscible liquids. They are colloidal fluids containing one surfactant film, classified as oil-in-water (o/w), water-in-oil (w/o) or bicontinuous systems depending on their microstructure. The shape of the aggregates can be spherical, rod-like, and even worm-like, all of them characterized by having at least one dimension of about 10–100 nm. Some of the numerous applications of microemulsions relate to their potential uses as drug delivery systems, for the design of new composite materials, personal care and cleaning products, pharmaceutical formulations, chemical reaction media, and in the art restoration and petrochemical industry.

Nanoemulsions are kinetically stable liquid dispersions, consisting only of nanodroplets with sizes of a few hundred nm. Although they do not form spontaneously but are obtained by mechanical force, nanoemulsions are widespread in the food, pharmaceutical, and personal care industries due to their unique physicochemical properties and functional attributes, such as high surface area per unit volume, transparent appearance, tunable rheology, and advanced bioavailability.

I warmly invite scholars involved in the Colloids and Surface Science research areas to contribute original research papers as well as review articles to this Special Issue, in order to give the readers of Nanomaterials an updated and new perspective of these versatile colloidal systems for all kinds of applications, including both small- and large-scale processes.

Prof. Dr. Ruggero Angelico
Guest Editor

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