Structure of oil-in-water emulsions stabilised by silica and hydrophobised titania particles.

We have studied the stability and structure of emulsions formed in the presence of colloidal mixtures of partially hydrophobic titania particles and hydrophilic silica particles. On their own, the titania particles attached strongly to the oil-water interface and stabilised emulsions, while the silica particles did not attach to the interface. Adding silica particles to the titania dispersions enhanced coalescence processes during emulsion formation, except under mixing conditions that favoured particle heteroaggregation. The destabilisation of the emulsions was linked to the presence of silica particles in the particle layers at the interface.