ah.........there is it is.
Perhaps.

Let's think about this statement.

This could be key to the entire notice about mist/microbubbles/apherons and why those bubbles persist a logn time while the larger gas bubbles inside a reactor quickly diffuses into solution.

It terms of total gas volume per bubble, the surface area is smaller, but in terms of total surface area, 10,000 micro bubbles vs 1 large bubble?

It's say the micro bubbles have far more surface area given that the gas volume for the 10,000 and the one large one are the same.

Agreed?

Now think about surface tension. Which bubble has more? The apheron or ther large bubble?

Obivously the microbubble.
Which bubble would be more prone to coalesce due to this tension?
Which would be more sticky due to surface tension?

Some might say all this disscussion is for not, but given the importantce of CO2 in planted tanks that us gas CO2, it is a critical thing that can always use a new understanding.

I think the size issue is critical with this theory/method.

I always go back to the Fick's first law:

J = -D * d/dx[C/x]

J is the flux, generally thought of as moles per time/area or for us ppms per secs/surface area.

D is the diffusivity constant.
Note: this changes when the phase of the compound changes!!!
Liquids diffuses much slower than gases!!!
About 10,000 times slower.

We know that from CO2 not equilibrating with ther air above, it takes a long time(several hours or more), but in air? Takes a few seconds.

C= concentration, that is not black and white as some seem to imply.
The area immediately around a bubble will have higher CO2 ppms than the water further away.

X is the surface area...........now think about a larger bubble and think about a micro bubble here.

When you think about flux, think about it in terms of the plant, not the water so much.

Think about what differences the micro bubble would have on CO2 flux into the plant.

Okay? Keep thinking.

Now think about what rate and what other gases are in solutiont that might quickly and rapidly flux into the microbubble, remember O2 and N2 are very insoluble and do not dissolve well. These are the 2 main gases besides the
CO2 we add.

They also have to dissolve based on that slow transfer of gas to liquid and from liquid to gas, 10,000x slower..............not just CO2 out of the bubble.

Another effect the microbubbles might have: increase the flux of O2 out of the plant. O2 is a waste product of photosynthesis.

Regards,
Tom Barr