Role of the counterion in the effects of added ethylene glycol to aqueous alkyltrimethylammonium micellar solutions

The influence of the addition of various amounts of ethylene glycol, EG, up to a weight percent of 50%, on the micellization process in N-hexadecyl, N-tetradecyl, and N-dodecyltrimethylammonium chloride micellar solutions was investigated. Conductivity, fluorescence, and spectroscopic measurements give information about changes in the cmc, in the micellar ionization degree, in the aggregation number and in the polarity of the interfacial region upon changing the percentage by weight of the organic solvent. These changes were compared to those found when ethylene glycol was added to the analogous alkyltrimethylammonium bromide aqueous micellar solutions, results showing that the effects caused by the presence of the organic solvent were practically independent of the counterion nature. This conclusion was in agreement with the micellar kinetic effects observed on the spontaneous hydrolysis of phenyl chloroformate in both water-ethylene glycol alkyltrimethylammonium bromide and chloride micellar solutions.     

Micellar solutions of sulfobetaine surfactants in water-ethylene glycol mixtures: surface tension, fluorescence, spectroscopic, conductometric, and kinetic studies

Micellization in water-ethylene glycol (EG) N-dodecyl, N-tetradecyl, and N-hexadecyl-N,N-dimethyl-3-ammonio-1-propanesulfonate (SB3-12, SB3-14, and SB3-16, respectively) micellar solutions, with the weight percent of EG changing within the range 0-40, was studied by means of surface tension measurements. Information about the influence of the added EG on the aggregation number of the sulfobetaine micelles and on the polarity of the interfacial region of micelles was obtained through fluorescence and spectroscopic measurements. Surface tension measurements also provide information about the dependence of the surface excess concentration, the minimum area per surfactant molecule, the surface pressure at the cmc, and the standard Gibbs energy of adsorption on the added weight percent of the organic solvent. The Gordon parameter of the water-EG mixtures was also estimated by means of surface tension measurements. The thermodynamic and structural changes originated by the presence of EG control the micellar kinetic effects observed in the reaction methyl 4-nitrobenzenesulfonate + Br(-) occurring in the water-EG sulfobetaine micellar solutions. Information about the distribution of bromide ions between the bulk and micellar pseudophases was obtained through conductivity measurements. The kinetic micellar effects were quantitatively explained by using the pseudophase kinetic model.     

Effects of ethylene glycol addition on the aggregation and micellar growth of gemini surfactants

Micellization of three didodecyl dicationic dibromide gemini surfactants with different methylene spacer lengths, 12-s-12,2Br- where s = 3-5 methylene groups, has been investigated in water-ethylene glycol, EG, mixtures with weight percentages of EG up to 50%. Subsequently, effects of the addition of the organic solvent on the micellar growth of these surfactants and on the surfactant concentration range where sphere-to-rod transitions occur were studied by means of steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence quenching and spectroscopic measurements. Results show that an increase in the weight percentage of ethylene glycol added to aqueous 12-s-12,2Br- (s = 3-5) micellar solutions causes the sphere-to-rod transition to occur at higher surfactant concentrations than in pure water. The diminution in the average aggregation number, N(agg), when wt % EG increases, provoked by the decrease in the interfacial Gibbs energy contribution to DeltaG degrees M, is the main factor responsible for this observation. The decrease in N(agg) is accompanied by a decrease in the ionic interactions and the extra packing contribution to the deformation of the surfactants tails, making formation of cylindrical micelles less favorable. Besides, an increase in the solvent content and polarity of the interfacial region does not favor formation of direct ion pairs, decreasing the tendency of micelles to grow.     

Micellar medium effects on the hydrolysis of phenyl chloroformate in ionic,zwitterionic, nonionic,and mixed micellar solutions

The spontaneous hydrolysis of phenyl chloroformate was studied in various anionic, nonionic, zwitterionic, and cationic aqueous micellar solutions, as well as in mixed anionic–nonionic micellar solutions. In all cases, an increase in the surfactant concentration results in a decrease in the reaction rate and micellar effects were quantitatively explained in terms of distribution of the substrate between water and micelles and the first‐order rate constants in the aqueous and micellar pseudophases. A comparison of the kinetic data in nonionic micellar solutions to those in anionic and zwiterionic micellar solutions makes clear that charge effects of micelles is not the only factor responsible for the variations in the reaction rate. Depletion of water in the interfacial region and its different characteristics as compared to bulk water, the presence of high ionic concentration in the Stern layer of ionic micelles, and differences in the stabilization of the initial state and the transition state by hydrophobic interactions with surfactant tails can also influence reactivity. The different deceleration of the reaction observed in the various micellar solutions studied was discussed by considering these factors. Synergism in mixed‐micellar solutions is shown through the kinetic data obtained in these media. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 34: 445–451, 2002     

Water-N,N-dimethylformamide alkyltrimethylammonium bromide micellar solutions: thermodynamic, structural, and kinetic studies

Various amounts of N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) with the weight percentage of DMF varying within the range 0-20, were added to aqueous micellar solutions of hexadecyl-, tetradecyl-, and dodecyltrimethylammonium bromides (CTAB, TTAB, and DTAB, respectively). Information about changes in the critical micelle concentrations, in the micellar ionization degrees, in the aggregation numbers, and in the polarity of the interfacial region of micelles upon changing the weight percent of DMF was obtained through conductivity and fluorescence measurements. Surface tension measurements permitted the estimation of the Gordon parameter of the water-DMF mixtures. The thermodynamic and structural changes provoked by the addition of DMF to the cationic micellar solutions were evidenced through the micellar kinetic effects observed in the reaction methyl 4-nitrobenzenesulfonate + Br-, investigated in the water-DMF cationic micellar solutions. The pseudophase kinetic model was adequate to quantitatively rationalize the dependence of the observed rate constant on surfactant concentration as well as on the weight percent of DMF.     

Effects of organic solvent addition on the aggregation and micellar growth of cationic dimeric surfactant 12-3-12,2Br-

The micellization and micellar growth of cationic dimeric surfactant propanediyl-alpha-omega-bis(dodecyldimethylammonium) bromide, 12-3-12,2Br-, have been studied in several water-organic solvent mixtures. The organic solvents were ethylene glycol, glycerol, 1,2-propylene glycol, 1,3-propylene glycol, acetonitrile, dioxane, formamide, and N,N-dimethylformamide. Results showed that the aggregation process was less favored in the binary mixtures than in pure water, which was explained by considering the influence of the solvophobic effect on micellization. The addition of organic solvents was accompanied by a diminution in the average aggregation number, Nagg, of the dimeric micelles. This diminution was due to the decrease in the interfacial Gibbs energy contribution, Delta G0interfacial, to the Gibbs energy of micellization caused by the decrease in the hydrocarbon/bulk-phase interfacial tension. As a result of the micelle size diminution, the concentration at which the sphere-to-rod transition occurred, C*, was higher in the mixtures than in pure water. Micelle size reduction is accompanied by a decrease in the ionic interactions and in the extra packing contribution to the deformation of the surfactants tails, making the formation of cylindrical micelles less favorable.     

Location of Pinacyanol in Micellar Solutions of N-Alkyl Trimethylammonium Bromide Surfactants

The interaction of pinacyanol (PIN), a cationic dye formed by monomer and dimer species, with three cationic surfactants (DTAB, TTAB, and HTAB) has been studied spectroscopically and by acid-base equilibrium in the micellar concentration range. In the presence of surfactants, the absorption maximum of the two main peaks undergoes bathochromic shifts. The spectral shifts suggest a hydrophobic environment of the chromophore. The presence of micelles favors the monomer species; i.e., it reduces the extent of dimerization. The pK(a) of PIN in micellar medium is similar to the value in pure water. When acid-base equilibrium was considered, the changes in the interfacial pK(a) allowed to us to determine the constant dielectric for the interfacial region (epsilon=69). This led to the conclusion that the dye must be solubilized between the solution and the hydrocarbon chain core, i.e., in the aqueous micellar interface. This location can be explained by a cation-pi interaction between the uncharged ring system of the dye and the cationic headgroups of the surfactants. Copyright 2001 Academic Press.     

Influence of the addition of alcohol on the reaction methyl-4-nitrobenzenesulfonate + Br(-) in tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide aqueous micellar solutions

The reaction methyl-4-nitrobenzenesulfonate + Br(-) was studied in tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide (TTAB) aqueous micellar solutions in the absence and in the presence of various amounts of n-hexanol, n-pentanol, and n-butanol. Kinetic micellar effects provoked by the addition of the linear alcohols can be rationalized by using simple pseudophase kinetic models. The equilibrium binding constants of the methyl-4-nitrobenzenesulfonate molecules to the cationic micelles decreases when [alcohol] increases. The (k(2)(m)/V(m)) values found are practically the same for the different TTAB-alcohol micellar solutions studied, independent of the nature and concentration of the alcohol present in the reaction medium. This has been explained by considering the balance of two factors operating on reactivity in opposite ways: (1). an increase in the volume of the micellar interfacial region upon increasing alcohol concentration, and (2). a decrease in the polarity of the interfacial region as the amount of alcohol present in the micellar solutions increases.     

Phenyl-ring-bearing cationic surfactants: effect of ring location on the micellar structure

A series of isomeric cationic surfactants (S1-S5) bearing a long alkyl chain that carries a 1,4-phenylene unit and a trimethyl ammonium headgroup was synthesized; the location of the phenyl ring within the alkyl tail was varied in an effort to understand its influence on the amphiphilic properties of the surfactants. The cmc's of the surfactants were estimated using ionic conductivity measurements and isothermal calorimetric titrations (ITC); the values obtained by the two methods were found to be in excellent agreement. The ITC measurements provided additional insight into the various thermodynamic parameters associated with the micellization process. Although all five surfactants have exactly the same molecular formula, their micellar properties were seen to vary dramatically depending on the location of the phenyl ring; the cmc was seen to decrease by almost an order of magnitude when the phenyl ring was moved from the tail end (cmc of S1 is 23 mM) to the headgroup region (cmc of S5 is 3 mM). In all cases, the enthalpy of micellization was negative but the entropy of micellization was positive, suggesting that in all of these systems the formation of micelles is both enthalpically and entropically favored. As expected, the decrease in cmc values upon moving the phenyl ring from the tail end to the headgroup region is accompanied by an increase in the thermodynamic driving force (ΔG) for micellization. To understand further the differences in the micellar structure of these surfactants, small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) measurements were carried out; these measurements reveal that the aggregation number of the micelles increases as the cmc decreases. This increase in the aggregation number is also accompanied by an increase in the asphericity of the micellar aggregate and a decrease in the fractional charge. Geometric packing arguments are presented to account for these changes in aggregation behavior as a function of phenyl ring location.     

Importance of micellar kinetics in relation to technological processes

The association of many classes of surface-active molecules into micellar aggregates is a well-known phenomenon. Micelles are in dynamic equilibrium, constantly disintegrating and reforming. This relaxation process is characterized by the slow micellar relaxation time constant, tau(2), which is directly related to the micellar stability. Theories of the kinetics of micelle formation and disintegration have been discussed to identify the gaps in our complete understanding of this kinetic process. The micellar stability of sodium dodecyl sulfate micelles has been shown to significantly influence technological processes involving a rapid increase in interfacial area, such as foaming, wetting, emulsification, solubilization, and detergency. First, the available monomers adsorb onto the freshly created interface. Then, additional monomers must be provided by the breakup of micelles. Especially when the free monomer concentration is low, which is the case for many nonionic surfactant solutions, the micellar breakup time is a rate-limiting step in the supply of monomers. The Center for Surface Science & Engineering at the University of Florida has developed methods using stopped flow and pressure jump with optical detection to determine the slow relaxation time of micelles of nonionic surfactants. The results showed that the ionic surfactants such as SDS exhibit slow relaxation times in the range from milliseconds to seconds, whereas nonionic surfactants exhibit slow relaxation times in the range from seconds (for Triton X-100) to minutes (for polyoxyethylene alkyl ethers). The slow relaxation times are much longer for nonionic surfactants than for ionic surfactants, because of the absence of ionic repulsion between the head groups. The observed relaxation times showed a direct correlation with dynamic surface tension and foaming experiments. In conclusion, relaxation time data of surfactant solutions correlate with the dynamic properties of the micellar solutions. Moreover, the results suggest that appropriate micelles with specific stability or tau(2) can be designed by controlling the surfactant structure, concentration, and physicochemical conditions (e.g., salt concentration, temperature, and pressure). One can also tailor micelles by mixing anionic/cationic or ionic/nonionic surfactants for a desired stability to control various technological processes.     

离子液体表面活性剂1-丁基-3-甲基咪唑烷基硫酸酯的合成及其在水溶液中的聚集行为

采用离子交换法,由1-丁基-3甲基咪唑氯盐（C4mimCl）和烷基硫酸钠合成了一系列无卤素的阴离子表面活性离子液体—1-丁基-3-甲基咪唑烷基硫酸酯[C4mim][CnH2n 1SO4](n=8,12,16),利用表面张力仪、稳态荧光光谱等手段考察了表面活性离子液体在水溶液表面及体相中的聚集行为,结果表明,与传统无机反离子相比,有机咪唑阳离子[C4mim] 作为反离子的离子液体型表面活性剂具有较高的表面活性,[C4mim] 产生的氢键引起的抑制分子规则排列的作用小于其促进分子有序排列的疏水作用。长烷基链的阴离子是界面膜及胶束的主要组成成分,阴离子疏水烷基碳链的增长虽然可促进胶束的形成,但却在一定程度上抑制[C4mim] 离子参与界面或胶束的形成;阴离子所带烷基链越长,越不利于阳离子[C4mim]＋参与界面膜或胶束的形成,界面膜或胶束中表面活性剂排布越松散,即界面张力越大,体系中胶束聚集数较小。     

Fluorescence behavior of intramolecular charge transfer probe in anionic, cationic, and nonionic micelles

The intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) property of trans-ethyl p-(dimethylamino) cinnamate is used to probe the anionic, cationic, and nonionic micelles by steady-state and picosecond time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy. The ICT fluorescence band intensity was found to increase with concomitant blue shift with addition of surfactants. All the experimental results suggest that the probe molecule resides in the micelle-water interface rather than going into the core. However, the penetration is more toward the micellar core in nonionic surfactants when compared with ionic micelles. The decrease in nonradiative decay constants in micellar environments indicate restricted motion of the probe toward the formation of ICT state. Critical micelle concentrations were determined from the sharp change in fluorescence intensity and effective dielectric constants of the micelle-water interface were calculated from the correlation diagram of 0,0 transition energy with polarity of the medium.     

Fluorescence Anisotropy of Probes Solubilized in Micelles of Tetradecyltrymethylammonium Bromide: Effect of Ethylene Glycol Added

This paper deals with the effect of ethylene glycol on the micelle formation of tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide. The effect of ethylene glycol addition on the fluorescence anisotropy of several probe molecules residing in different regions of the micelle was investigated to address the solvent penetration in the micelle structure. Fluorescence depolarization measurements were carried out on micellar systems containing two different hydrophobic dyes, namely, perylene and diphenylbutadiene, and a hydrophilic one, fluorescein. The steady-state anisotropy values obtained in these experiments were used to estimate the microviscosity of the corresponding micellar regions. It is observed that the microviscosity in the hydrophobic regions of micelles were roughly constant with EG addition, indicating that the micellar interior does not undergo significant structural changes by the presence of cosolvent in the solution. However, the microviscosity at the micellar surface, as determined by using fluorescein as a probe, is found to increase with EG addition. This perturbation of the micellar surface is ascribed to the solvent penetration in this region of the micelle, where there is probably participation in the solvation layer of the micelle headgroups. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.     

Kinetics of alkaline fading of methyl violet in micellar solutions of surfactants: Comparing Piszkiewicz's,Berezin's,and pseudophase ion-exchange models

The micellar effect of surfactants of various types on the rate of the reaction between methyl violet and hydroxide ion is studied. The absorption spectra show that the cation of methyl violet is bound by micelles of all types at proper concentrations of surfactants. The observed rate constant in micellar systems containing nonionic Brij-35, zwitterionic 3-(dimethyldodecylammonio)-propanesulfonate, cationic cetyltrimethylammonium bromide and hydroxide surfactants is higher, whereas in solutions of the anionic surfactant sodium dodecylsulfate is lower than that one in the surfactant-free system. Piszkiewicz's, Berezin's, and pseudophase ion-exchange models of the kinetic micellar effect are used for the treatment of the dependences of the above-mentioned constants on the surfactant concentration. The values of the corresponding kinetic parameters are compared and discussed. The influence of nonionic, zwitterionic, and anionic micelles on the reaction rate is discussed on the basis of medium and concentration kinetic effects. The character of the cationic micelles effect is somewhat paradoxical. Although the observed pseudo–first-order reaction rate constant substantially increases in the presence of such micelles, the second order-rate constant in these micelles is lower than the corresponding value in surfactant-free aqueous solution. As a possible explanation, the decrease in the reactivity of the HO^– ions is proposed, owing to their electrostatic association with the cationic headgroups (“diverting effect”).     

Micelle dissociation kinetics study by dynamic surface tension of micellar solutions

The dynamic surface of sodium tetradecylsulphate and sodium bexadecylsulphate solutions in water and also in Triton X-100 solutions was measured by the maximum bubble-pressure method, using modern computerized instrumentation, for a wide range of surface lifetimes (from 0.001 to 10 s), temperatures (from 30 to 80°C) and surfactant concentrations (from 1 to 200 CMC). On the basis of a previously suggested adsorption kinetics theory for micellar solutions of ionogenic surfactants (V.B. Fainerman, Colloids Surfaces, 62 (1992) 333) a method was developed for the calculation of the micellar dissociation rate constant k. For the surfactants studied, k increases with increasing concentration. Moreover, for ionic surfactants the dependence of k on concentration (C) becomes more striking for C> (10–30) CMC. This can be explained by a micelle shape transition and by a strengthening of the intermolecular repulsion in micelles. In solutions of the ionic surfactants the constant k increasing with increasing temperature, whereas in Triton X-100 solutions a temperature dependence is absent. This phenomenon is associated with the different nature of the molecular interactions for ionogenic and non-ionogenic surfactants in micelles. The k values, obtained from results of dynamic surface tension measurements, are in satisfactory agreement with the results of a study of the relaxation of micellar solutions published previously.     

Interaction and Stability of Mixed Micelle and Monolayer of Nonionic and Cationic Surfactant Mixtures

Interaction and stability of binary mixtures of cationic surfactants hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (HTAB) or hexadecylpyridinium bromide (HPyBr) with nonionic surfactant decanoyl-N-methyl-glucamide (Mega-10) have been studied at different mole fraction of cationic surfactants by using interfacial tension measurements and fluorescence probe techniques. From interfacial tension measurements, the critical micellar concentration and various interfacial thermodynamic parameters have been evaluated. The experimental cmc's were analyzed with the pseudophase separation model, the regular solution theory, and the Maeda's approach. These approaches allowed us to determine the interaction parameter and composition in the mixed state. By using the static quenching method, the mean micellar aggregation numbers of pure and mixed micelles of HTAB + Mega-10 were obtained. It has been observed that the aggregation number of mixed micelles deviates negatively from the ideal behavior. The micropolarity of the micelle was monitored with pyrene fluorescence intensity ratio and found to be increase with the increase of ionic content. The polarization of fluorescence probe Rhodamine B was monitored at different mole fraction of cationic surfactants.     

MMA在胶束水溶液中的光敏聚合

应用动力学方法研究了二苯甲酮/三乙胺引发MMA在胶束水溶液中的光敏聚合反应,结果表明表面活性剂的胶束对聚合反应具有催化作用,以离子型胶束的效果显著,可使反应的量子收率提高4—5倍。聚合速度和产物分子量随胶速浓度而增加,用紫外光谱和~1H—NMR测定了BP/TEA/MMA在离子型胶束中增溶位置,结果表明反应发生在胶束-水界面层。由于增溶于离子胶束中的单体分子具有一定取向性,提高了PMMA的立构有序性。     

Study of the reaction methyl 4‐nitrobenzene‐sulfonate + Cl− in mixed hexadecyltrimethyl‐ammonium chloride‐triton X‐100 micellar solutions

The reaction methyl 4‐nitrobenzenesulfonate + Cl^? was studied in hexadecyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAC) in the absence and presence of 0.1 M NaCl, as well as in mixed CTAC/Triton X‐100 (polyoxyethylene(9.5)octylphenyl ether) aqueous micellar solutions with CTAC molar fractions of 0.9, 0.8, 0.7, and 0.6. Conductivity measurements were used to obtain critical micellar concentrations and micellar ionization degrees of the various micellar reaction media. From these data, thermodynamic information on the cationic/nonionic mixed micellar solutions was obtained. Micellar effects on the observed rate constant were explained by pseudophase kinetic models. The estimated second‐order rate constants in the micellar pseudophase of the different micellar reaction media showed that pure CTAC and mixed CTAC/Triton X‐100 micelles, at the high cationic surfactant molar fractions studied, provide reaction sites of similar characteristics at the interfacial region. This was in agreement with previous structural studies carried out on mixed CTAC/Triton X‐100 micellar solutions. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 35: 45–51, 2003     

SANS studies of the effects of surfactant head group on aggregation properties in water/glycol and pure glycol systems

Aggregation in mixed water-glycol and pure glycol solvents has been investigated with four related surfactants, bearing common C12 tails: anionic, sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS); cationic, dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide (C12TAB); zwitterionic C12-amidopropyldimethylamine betaine (betaine) and nonionic, octaethyleneglycol monododecyl ether (C12E8). The solvent media were water, water/ethylene glycol, and water/propylene glycol mixtures, as well as pure ethylene glycol (EG) and propylene glycol (PG), spanning relative dielectrics epsilon(r) from 79 to 30. Results from small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) experiments, employing deuterated solvents, were consistent with the presence of ellipsoidal, or cylindrical micelles, depending on solvent and surfactant type. In pure EG and PG solvents the ionic and zwitterionic surfactants exhibit only weak aggregation, with much smaller micelles than normally found in water. However, interestingly, pure EG is identified as a solvent in which nonionic C12E8 aggregates strongly, mirroring the behavior in water. In contrast when the solvent is changed to PG (epsilonr=30) aggregation of C12E8 is only minimal. Hence, aggregation is shown to be strongly dependent on surfactant type and identity of the glycol solvent.     

FLUORESCENCE PROBE FOR MICROENVIRONMENTS: A NEW PROBE FOR MICELLE SOLVENT PARAMETERS AND PREMICELLAR AGGREGATES

Abstract— A previous study on the electronic spectroscopy of p -N,N-dialkylaminobenzylidenemalononitrile, 1, has been extended to a larger variety of organic solvents and to micelles of ionic and nonionic surfactants. By comparing the fluorescence emission (λ_F and φ_∫) of 1 in micelles and in homogeneous organic solvents, the effective polarity and the microviscosity of the micellar environments of potassium dodecanoate, sodium dodecyl sulfate, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide and Triton X-100 micelles have been determined to be 40, 40, 36 and 28, respectively and 23, 31, 34 and 28 cP, respectively. These results indicate that the fluorescence probe is located in the micelle–water interface of a micelle and this region of a micelle is polar and viscous. 1 has also been studied in different surfactants with varying surfactant concentrations. The φ_∫ of 1, a microviscosity gauge for micellar aggregates, remains unchanged at the critical micelle concentrations of various surfactants, but decreases at much lower surfactant concentrations. This is attributable to the formation of premicellar aggregates of surfactant molecules below their critical micelle concentrations.