{"id":1783,"date":"2012-04-20T15:01:04","date_gmt":"2012-04-20T19:01:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.vassar.edu\/magnes\/?p=1783"},"modified":"2013-07-11T10:29:53","modified_gmt":"2013-07-11T14:29:53","slug":"static-light-scattering-results","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/2012\/04\/20\/static-light-scattering-results\/","title":{"rendered":"Static Light Scattering-Results"},"content":{"rendered":"

Origin Graph Depicting Scattering Intensity vs. Concentration<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Using the theory of Static Light Scattering a graph was made for particle size\u00a0105 nm<\/strong>\u00a0(in diameter) for volumes\u00a01000, 2000, 3000, 4000 microliters <\/strong>and the predicted scattering intensity was found using Equation [3<\/strong>]. \u00a0The wavelength<\/strong> used was 632.8 nanometers <\/strong>(red in the visible spectrum) so the particle size was within the Rayleigh limit. \u00a0The scattering intensity was then plotted as the concentration of the particles was varied.<\/p>\n

1\/y-intercept was supposed to yield the molecular mass of a particle in Daltons. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0(1 Dalton=1amu). \u00a0A linear fit was applied to the graph in order to find the y-intercept. \u00a0As shown on the graph the y-intercept<\/strong> was found to be\u00a0 $2.3*{10^{-12}}$<\/strong><\/p>\n

which yields a molecular mass <\/strong>of approximately\u00a0\u00a0$4.5*{10^{11}} $ Daltons<\/strong><\/p>\n

In order to calculate the actual molecular mass of the microspheres the 2SPI website was used. \u00a0Here’s the link:\u00a0http:\/\/www.2spi.com\/catalog\/standards\/microspheres.shtml<\/a><\/p>\n

The approximate concentration listed on the website of the 0.105 micrometer spheres was ${10^{3}}$ particles\/mL<\/strong><\/p>\n

The bead density was approximately $1.05$ grams\/mL<\/p>\n

which meant that each particle was approximately $1.05*{10^{-16}}$ kg<\/p>\n

In order to convert between kilograms and Daltons it is important to note that $1.022*{10^{-27}}$ equals approximately 1 Dalton.<\/p>\n

This yielded a molecular mass<\/strong> of $1.1*{10^{11}}$ Daltons<\/strong><\/p>\n

While the calculated molecular mass and the actual molecular mass are on the same scale (both ${10^{11}}$) the answer is still off by a factor of about 3 to 4.<\/p>\n

This error may stem from the many approximations used when calculating the actual molecular mass. \u00a0The number of particles\/mL was estimated on the SPI website. \u00a0Also the bead density was approximate. \u00a0Since these polystyrene microspheres are mass produced it cannot be guaranteed that every particle is the exact same size and a perfect spherical shape. \u00a0There will also be slight variations in the particle densities across different containers. \u00a0However the particles need to meet certain standards, so the error is limited, but could possibly account for the small differences between the actual and calculated molecular mass.<\/p>\n

In addition, since the slope was found to be $1.057*{10^{-9}}$ (which is greater than zero) it would appear, based on Static Light Scattering Theory, that the particles will stay in a stable solution. \u00a0This information was confirmed on the 2SPI MSDS data and safety sheet for these microspheres (the sheet claims the solution formed with these sphere is stable).<\/p>\n

Just for reference it seems like the method I used for calculating the molecular mass based on Static Light Scattering Theory is not the easiest, quickest, nor most accurate method. \u00a0Equipment can be purchased that measures the intensity of the samples at different concentrations, compares it to a known standard, and outputs a Debye Plot which calculates the molecular mass and the gradient of the graph. \u00a0However, it can be important to test theories in a more controlled method where every step of the process is known in order to check the accuracy of the theory and learn exactly how the equipment works.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Origin Graph Depicting Scattering Intensity vs. Concentration Using the theory of Static Light Scattering a graph was made for particle size\u00a0105 nm\u00a0(in diameter) for volumes\u00a01000, 2000, 3000, 4000 microliters and the predicted scattering intensity was found using Equation [3]. \u00a0The wavelength used was 632.8 nanometers (red in the visible spectrum) so the particle size was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":264,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4101,926,29905],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1783","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-advanced-em","category-rebecca","category-spring-2012"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1783","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/264"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1783"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1783\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2409,"href":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1783\/revisions\/2409"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1783"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.vassar.edu\/magnes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}