Molecular behaviour of a surfactant layer under an external electrostatic field

The impact of electrostatic fields on film tension was investigated by molecular simulations. The simulation results confirmed the experimentally observed correlation (C.M. Phan, M. Haseeb, 2020) between film tension and the applied field. The surface tension, and film tension, are linearly reduced with an increasing electrostatic field. A closer investigation reveals the molecular nature of electrostatic field-induced reduction. The molecular mechanism of reduction was not ionic displacement as proposed previously. Instead, the reduction was caused by the disrupted H-bonds network. Electrostatic field application can help understand the H-bonds structure of water at the surface and bulk interior.