Specific ion effects via ion hydration: I. Surface tension

A simple modality is suggested to include, in the framework of a modified Poisson–Boltzmann approach, specific ion effects via the change in the ion hydration between the bulk and the vicinity of the surface. This approach can account for both the depletion of the interfacial region of structure-making ions as well as for the accumulation of structure-breaking ions near the interface. Expressions for the change in interfacial tension as a function of electrolyte concentrations are derived. On the basis of this theory, one explains the dependence of the surface potential on pH and electrolyte concentration, the existence of a minimum in the surface tension at low electrolyte concentrations and the linear dependence, with a positive or sometimes negative slope, of the surface tension on the electrolyte concentration at sufficiently high ionic strengths.