nanomaterials Review Nanoparticle and Bioparticle Deposition Kinetics: Quartz Microbalance Measurements Anna Bratek-Skicki 1,2,* , Marta Sadowska 2, Julia Maciejewska-Pro ´nczuk 3 and Zbigniew Adamczyk 2 1 Structural Biology Brussels, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium 2 Jerzy Haber Institute of Catalysis and Surface Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences, Niezapominajek 8, 30-239 Krakow, Poland;
[email protected] (M.S.);
[email protected] (Z.A.) 3 Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, Cracow University of Technology, Warszawska 24, PL-31155 Krakow, Poland;
[email protected] * Correspondence:
[email protected] Abstract: Controlled deposition of nanoparticles and bioparticles is necessary for their separation and purification by chromatography, filtration, food emulsion and foam stabilization, etc. Compared to numerous experimental techniques used to quantify bioparticle deposition kinetics, the quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) method is advantageous because it enables real time measurements under different transport conditions with high precision. Because of its versatility and the decep- tive simplicity of measurements, this technique is used in a plethora of investigations involving nanoparticles, macroions, proteins, viruses, bacteria and cells. However, in contrast to the robustness of the measurements, theoretical interpretations of QCM measurements for a particle-like load is complicated because the primary signals (the oscillation frequency and the band width shifts) depend on the force exerted on the sensor rather than on the particle mass. Therefore, it is postulated that a proper interpretation of the QCM data requires a reliable theoretical framework furnishing reference results for well-defined systems. Providing such results is a primary motivation of this work where Citation: Bratek-Skicki, A.; the kinetics of particle deposition under diffusion and flow conditions is discussed.