File:Changes in particle size and zeta potential during ELP aggregation.jpg

A) The particle size of the ELP aggregate changes. The particle size is around 10 nm before 44℃, then it reaches 100 nm or more at 44℃, and thereafter it rises sharply. B) Changes in zeta potential of ELP aggregates. The change is relatively flat before 40℃, and the value is around -5mV; at 40℃, there is a sharp drop. That's because ELP has accumulated locally, but no aggregates are formed. The positive charge of ELP attracts anions in the solution environment, so it appears as a anionic enhancement; the inflection point appears at 43℃, where the ELP has been aggregated, and the relative density of the surface charge of the aggregate is lower than the charge density of the dispersed state. Therefore, the absolute value of the charge is reduced, but it will not cause electrical reversal and a particularly drastic change in the amount of charge occur.