We measured the viscosity of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG 6000, 12 000, 20 000) in water using capillary electrophoresis and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy with nanoscopic probes of different diameters (from 1.7 to 114 nm). For a probe of diameter smaller than the radius of gyration of PEG (e.g.rhodamine B or lyzozyme) the measured nanoviscosity was orders of magnitude smaller than the macroviscosity. For sizes equal to (or larger than) the polymer radius of gyration, macroscopic value of viscosity was measured. A mathematical relation for macro and nanoviscosity was found as a function of PEG radius of gyration, R_g, correlation length in semi-dilute solution, ξ, and probe size, R. For R < R_g, the nanoviscosity (normalized by water viscosity) is given by exp(b(R/ξ)^a), and for R > R_g, both nano and macroviscosity follow the same curve, exp(b(R/ξ)^a), where a and b are two constants close to unity. This mathematical relation was shown to equally well describe rhodamine (of size 1.7 nm) in PEG 20 000 and the macroviscosity of PEG 8 000 000, whose radius of gyration exceeds 200 nm. Additionally, for the smallest probes (rhodamine B and lysozyme) we have verified, using capillary electrophoresis and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, that the Stokes–Einstein (SE) relation holds, providing that we use a size-dependent viscosity in the formula. The SE relation is correct even in PEG solutions of very high viscosity (three orders of magnitude larger than that of water).

We used Grand canonical Monte Carlo simulation to model the hydrogen storage in the primitive, gyroid, diamond, and quasi-periodic icosahedral nanoporous carbon materials and in carbon nanotubes. We found that none of the investigated nanoporous carbon materials satisfy the US Department of Energy goal of volumetric density and mass storage for automotive application (6 wt% and 45 kg H₂ m⁻³) at considered storage condition. Our calculations indicate that quasi-periodic icosahedral nanoporous carbon material can reach the 6 wt% at 3.8 MPa and 77 K, but the volumetric density does not exceed 24 kg H₂ m⁻³. The bundle of single-walled carbon nanotubes can store only up to 4.5 wt%, but with high volumetric density of 42 kg H₂ m⁻³. All investigated nanoporous carbon materials are not effective against compression above 20 MPa at 77 K because the adsorbed density approaches the density of the bulk fluid. It follows from this work that geometry of carbon surfaces can enhance the storage capacity only to a limited extent. Only a combination of the most effective structure with appropriate additives (metals) can provide an efficient storage medium for hydrogen in the quest for a source of “clean” energy.

We present a method for the generation of periodic embedded surfaces of nonpositive Gaussian curvature and multiply continuous phases. The structures are related to the local minima of the scalar order parameter Landau-Ginzburg Hamiltonian for microemulsions. In the bicontinuous structure the single surface separates the volume into two disjoint subvolumes. In some of our phases (multiply continuous) there is more than one periodic surface that disconnects the volume into three or more disjoint subvolumes. We show that some of these surfaces are triply periodic minimal surfaces. We have generated known minimal surfaces (e.g., Schwarz primitive P, diamond D, and Schoen-Luzatti gyroid G and many surfaces of high genus. We speculate that the structure of microemulsion can be related to the high-genus gyroid structures, since the high-genus surfaces were most easily generated in the phase diagram close to the microemulsion stability region. We study in detail the geometrical characteristics of these phases, such as genus per unit cell, surface area per unit volume, and volume fraction occupied by oil or water in such a structure. Our discovery calls for new experimental techniques, which could be used to discern between bicontinuous and multiply continuous structures. We observe that multiply continuous structures are most easily generated close to the water-oil coexistence region. © 1996 The American Physical Society.