Moses Effect Inspired Displacement of Floating Diamagnetic Bodies:
New Possibilities for Key Separation Technologies

Edward Bormashenko, Ariel University, Engineering Faculty, Chemical Engineering, Biotechnology and Materials Department, Ariel, Israel


Diamagnetic objects (polymer and metallic plates and spheres, ceramic beads and liquid marbles), floating on water and a variety of organic liquids may be driven by a steady magnetic field of 50 mT. Diamagnetic bodies are attracted to the magnet when the apparent contact angle at the solid/liquid interface is obtuse and repelled from the magnet when it is acute. Cold plasma treated polyolefin rafts and spheres, demonstrating underwater floating, are repelled by the permanent magnet. Adding surfactant to the water, as well as cold plasma treatment of polyolefin bodies can turn the attraction into the repelling. We conjecture that the observed effects are caused by the interplay of two main phenomena. The first is the gravity, which induces sliding of the particle on deformed liquid/vapor interface (the Moses effect). The second effect is the hysteresis of the contact angle at the bodies' boundaries. The revealed effect serves as platform for separation technologies, including separation of living cells.

Permanent magnet attracts the floating polymer raft.


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