Synergistic Effect of Mixed Cosurfactants on Transdermal Delivery of Indomethacin from O/W Microemulsion

Since large amounts of oils, surfactants and penetration enhancers used in microemulsion systems might lead to seriously skin irritation, the percutaneous absorption and penetration of indomethacin(IMC, model drug) from O/W microemulsion were enhanced by simply changing the composition of cosurfactants. Pseudo-ternary phase diagrams were constructed with mixed cosurfactants at different ratios. Hairless rat skin was used as a barrier for permeation experiments. Four formulations were prepared with fixed oil, surfactant and different cosurfactant content(4%, 20% and 20%, mass fraction), and formulation F4 with menthol added was evaluated to compare the enhancement effect of it with those of mixed cosurfactants. The O/W microemulsion region was the largest when the mass ratio of ethanol/transcutol was 1:1. However, the region changed slightly for the system with incorporated mixed cosurfactants propylene glycol/transcutol. The flux and skin retention of IMC from O/W microemulsion with mixed cosurfactants were much higher than that with single cosurfactant(P<0.01), while incorporation of menthol would only enhance the drug flux through the skin. To conclude, mixed cosufactants could affect the phase behavior and improve the percutaneous absorption and penetration of IMC. Based on this, it provided a promising solution to enhance drug release from microemulsions without raising potential skin damage.     

Synthesis and Performance of High Efficiency Cosurfactants: 2. Commercial Variants

Commercially viable cosurfactant species of enhanced surface activity were used to formulate middle phase microemulsions. These cosurfactants were made from butanol, with randomly added equal weights of ethoxylate (EO) and propoxylate (PO) groups, to give a wide variation in molecular weight. It was found that cosurfactant requirements for microemulsion formation with the highest molecular weight compound studied was reduced more than an order of magnitude when compared to 2-butanol.     

Formation of fluorinated nonionic surfactant microemulsions in hydrofluorocarbon 134a (HFC 134a)

A structurally related series of fluorinated nonionic oxyethylene glycol surfactants of the type C(m)F(2m+1)(CH(2))(n)O[(CH(2)CH(2)O)(p)H], denoted C(m.n)E(p) (where m=4, 6, or 7, m=1 or 2, and p=4 or 6) were synthesized and their surface behavior in aqueous solution was characterized. The ability of these surfactants to form water-in-hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) propellant 134a microemulsions suitable for use in the aerosolized delivery of water-soluble drugs has been investigated. Phase studies showed that, regardless of the composition used, clear one-phase systems could not be prepared if a fluorinated nonionic surfactant was used alone, or in combination with a short or medium fluorocarbon alcohol cosurfactant. Clear one-phase systems could, however, be prepared if a short-chain hydrocarbon alcohol, such as ethanol, n-propanol, or n-pentanol, was used as cosurfactant, with the extent of the one-phase region increasing with decreased chain length of the alcohol cosurfactant. Light-scattering studies on a number of the hydrocarbon-alcoholcontaining systems in the propellant-rich part of the phase diagram showed that only systems prepared with C(4.2)E(6) and propanol contained microemulsion droplets (all other systems investigated were considered to be cosolvent systems).     

A Visible Spectroscopic Study of Microstructure of O/W Microemulsions of Anionic Surfactants: Effect of Cosurfactant

The microstructure of o/w microemulsions, stabilized by sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS) and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) with different cosurfactants, has been studied by partitioning of a dye, phenol red, between the oil‐water interface and bulk water. The cosurfactants used are propan‐1‐ol, propan‐2‐ol, butan‐1‐ol, butan‐2‐ol, pentane‐1‐ol, pentane‐2‐ol, and pentan‐3‐ol. The effects of changing the oil volume fraction and surfactant‐cosurfactant w/w ratio on the oil‐water interface and droplet size have also been discussed. Larger droplet size was predicted for SDS than SDBS. The predicted droplet radius increased with increase in the oil fraction, decrease in the surfactant concentration, increase in the C‐number of the linear cosurfactant, and decrease in branching of the cosurfactant. Surfactant‐cosurfactant ratio and pH did not affect the droplet size significantly. The minimum concentrations of surfactants with which microemulsions were formed were found to be higher for larger oil fraction, smaller C‐number of the alcohol, more branching of the alcohol, and higher pH.     

Study of nano-emulsion formation by dilution of microemulsions

The influence of different dilution procedures on the properties of oil-in-water (O/W) nano-emulsions obtained by dilution of oil-in-water (O/W) and water-in-oil (W/O) microemulsions has been studied. The system water/SDS/cosurfactant/dodecane with either hexanol or pentanol as cosurfactant was chosen as model system. The dilution procedures consisted of adding water (or microemulsion) stepwise or at once over a microemulsion (or water). Starting emulsification from O/W microemulsions, nano-emulsions with droplet diameters of 20 nm are obtained, independently on the microemulsion composition and the dilution procedure used. In contrast, starting emulsification from W/O microemulsions, nano-emulsions are only obtained if the emulsification conditions allow reaching the equilibrium in an O/W microemulsion domain during the process. These conditions are achieved by stepwise addition of water over W/O microemulsions with O/S ratios at which a direct microemulsion domain is crossed during emulsification. The nature of the alcohol used as cosurfactant has been found to play a key role on the properties of the nano-emulsions obtained: nano-emulsions in the system using hexanol as cosurfactant are smaller in size, lower in polydispersity, and have a higher stability than those with pentanol.     

Development and characterization of eucalyptol microemulsions for topic delivery of curcumin

Microemulsions have received great attention for applications in transdermal drug delivery. The use of curcumin for treating various skin diseases like scleroderma, psoriasis, and skin cancer was extensively reported. The solubility of curcumin in various oils, surfactants, and cosurfactants was studied herein in order to find the optimal components for a transdermal delivery vehicle. Microemulsion systems composed of eucalyptol, polysorbate 80, ethanol, and water were developed as transdermal delivery vehicles for curcumin. Effects of the microemulsion composition on transdermal curcumin delivery were studied using Franz diffusion cells. The transdermal curcumin flux, permeability coefficient, and enhancement ratio were analyzed to evaluate the effects of eucalyptol/water ratios in the microemulsions. Pseudo-ternary phase diagrams of the eucalyptol microemulsions with various surfactant/cosurfactant ratios (1:1-1:3) were constructed to investigate their phase behaviors. Conductivity, interfacial tension, size, and viscosity data of the microemulsions were used to characterize the physicochemical properties of transdermal vehicles. The influence of the microemulsions on skin histology and on the delivery route was analyzed using hematoxylin/eosin staining and confocal laser scanning microscopy. In conclusion, microemulsions were successfully developed for transdermal curcumin delivery after screening various components and adjusting the oil/water ratios. The curcumin permeation rate of the microemulsion developed was 15.7-fold higher than that of the control (eucalyptol only). These results indicate that an eucalyptol microemulsion system is a promising tool for the percutaneous delivery of curcumin.     

Microstructure and structural transition in microemulsions stabilized by aldonamide-type surfactants

Significant efforts were undertaken to characterize the microstructure and structural properties of water-in-oil (w/o), oil-in-water (o/w), and bicontinuous (bc) microemulsions composed of N-alkyl-N-methylgluconamides (n-alkyl = n-C(12)H(25), n-C(14)H(29), n-C(16)H(33)) and n-alcohols (ethanol, n-propanol, n-butanol) or iso-alcohols (iso-propanol, iso-butanol) as cosurfactants, as well as iso-octane and water. The internal structure of so created four-component system was elucidated by means of an analysis of isotropic area magnitudes in phase diagrams and conductivity measurements. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) measurements provided the microemulsion size and polydispersity. Polarity and viscosity of microemulsion microenvironment were acquired by means of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), UV-vis absorption spectroscopy (in the case of w/o droplets), and steady-state fluorescence (SSF) (in the case of o/w droplets). The results show that both the surfactant and the cosurfactant types affect the shape and extent of microemulsions. The size of droplets depends strongly on the type of examined microemulsion and the type of cosurfactant (linear or brunched) but is almost independent of the length of the surfactant alkyl chain. The size of microemulsion droplets ranges from 8.1 to 22.6 nm and from 3.7 to 14.3 nm respectively, for o/w and o/w microemulsions, making them good candidates for both template-based reactions and household components solubilizing media.     

POLYMERIZATION IN THE TRANSPARENT WATER-IN-OIL SOLUTIONS (I). METHYL METHACRYLATE AND THE COPOLYMERIZABLE COSURFACTANT

Polymerization of methyl methacrylic acid (MMA) was made in transparent W/O microemulsions and solutions. Acrylic Acid (AA) and pentanol were used as cosurfactants and sodium dodecyl sulfate as surfactant

Acrylic Acid as cosurfactant gave large microemulsion areas with the monomer of methyl methacrylic acid. Polymerization in areas where the microemulsion remained stable gave polymers with high molecular weights 10⁶.     

Microemulsions of Potassium Oleate,Tween-20, Propylene Carbonate,and Ethylene Glycol as Drug Vehicles for Mefenamic Acid

Different microemulsions were prepared with and without mefenamic acid (MFA). The base microemulsion was mainly composed of distilled water; the aqueous phase, propylene carbonate; the oil phase, potassium oleate; the surfactant, and finally di-ethylene glycol; the cosurfactant. The effect of mixing ionic (potassium oleate) with nonionic (Tween-20) surfactant was investigated via constructing the phase diagrams of such systems. Changes in conductivity and viscosity of the freshly prepared microemulsion over time were monitored as an indication for the stability of the microemulsion. Measurements were carried out at room temperature, after a freeze-thaw cycle and also after storage for 3 days at 60°C, where the latter is treated as an accelerated test for the time-temperature effects on the stability of a microemulsion. It was found that a set of surfactants, instead of a single surfactant, and inclusion of cosurfactant resulted in a broader region where a stable microemulsion is predominant. At a mass ratio of 1:2 of potassium oleate to Tween-20, O/W microemulsions were found to have maximum stability among all examined systems, under the accelerated test, such that they have a minimum portion of combined surfactants and cosurfactant of 60 wt% and maximum of 80 wt%. With the aforementioned specifications, no phase separation and neither significant change in the conductivity nor in the viscosity was observed in any of the examined systems after subjecting them both to the accelerated and freeze-thaw cycle test, indicating that such systems were thermodynamically stable. Samples of micro emulsions passing previous tests were further subjected to an acidic medium by dispersing 1 g of MFA-containing microemulsion in 10 g HCl solution (pH 1) in a shaking water bath at 37°C, for a 6 hour period. The maximum solubility of MFA in a stable microemulsion was approximately 5 wt%, evaluated at room temperature.     

Effect of ionic surfactants on the phase behavior and structure of sucrose ester/water/oil systems

The phase behavior and structure of sucrose ester/water/oil systems in the presence of long-chain cosurfactant (monolaurin) and small amounts of ionic surfactants was investigated by phase study and small angle X-ray scattering. In a water/sucrose ester/monolaurin/decane system at 27 degrees C, instead of a three-phase microemulsion, lamellar liquid crystals are formed in the dilute region. Unlike other systems in the presence of alcohol as cosurfactant, the HLB composition does not change with dilution, since monolaurin adsorbs almost completely in the interface. The addition of small amounts of ionic surfactant, regardless of the counterion, increases the solubilization of water in W/O microemulsions. The solubilization on oil in O/W microemulsions is not much affected, but structuring is induced and a viscous isotropic phase is formed. At high ionic surfactant concentrations, the single-phase microemulsion disappears and liquid crystals are favored.     

Formation of Microemulsions in Aqueous NaCl/Sodium (3-Dodecanoyloxy-2-Hydroxy-Propyl) Succinate/Glycerol Mono(2-Ethylhexyl) Ether/Oil Systems

Sodium (3-dodecanoyloxy-2-hydroxy-propyl) succinate (SLGMS) forms microemulsions by mixing with cosurfactants such as glycerol mono(2-ethylhexyl) ether (MEH), although the combination with ordinary cosurfactant such as hexanol does not form a microemulsion of large solubilization. The middle-phase microemulsion coexists with excess water and oil (octane) phases at an optimum-mixing fraction of SLGMS and MEH in the presence of salt. The monomeric solubility of MEH in oil is low and MEH is mainly combined with SLGMS at an oil—water interface inside microemulsions. With decreasing salinity, the three-phase body shrinks and eventually disappears. The three-phase body may be terminated at a tricritical point, at which three phases simultaneously coexist. The effect of type of oil on the solubilization capacity of the microemulsions is also discussed.     

The effect ofn-butyl glycol ethers on the phase diagrams of microemulsions formulated with nonionic surfactants

The effect ofn-butyl glycol ethers used as cosurfactants on the microemulsions formulated with two nonionic surfactants, hexaoxyethylene glycol monolauryl ether and sorbitan monolaurate, is presented on ternary phase diagrams. The solubilization parameters as well as isothermal invariant points (IIP) of microemulsions were correlated with the solubility parameters of cosurfactants. An optimum solubility parameter of cosurfactants was established around 9 (cal/cm³)^1/2 where both IIP and solubilization parameters are optimal for water and oil solubilization with the lowest concentration of amphiphilic compounds. The mixture of cosurfactants can be used to obtain a certain transition on the phase diagram and so to achieve certain characteristics for microemulsions, especially to tailor the solvency of the system.On leave from the University of Bucharest Department of Physical Chemistry Bdul Republicii 13 Bucharest, Romania     

Phase Behavior of n‐Butanol/n‐Octane/Water/Cationic Gemini Surfactant System

Phase diagrams of the n‐butanol/n‐octane/water/(12‐3‐12,2Br^?1) system were determined, where n‐octane usually represents oil (O), 12‐3‐12,2Br^?1 is a gemini cationic surfactant trimethylene‐1,3‐bis(dodecyldimethyl ammonium bromide) abbreviated as S, and n‐butanol is a co‐surfactant written as A. Effects of the weight ratio of gemini surfactant to cosurfactant, S/A, and of temperature on the phase behavior were studied. The microemulsion structures including O/W, bi‐continuous (B.C.), W/O, and liquid crystal were determined by the conductivity method and polarization measurement. Experimental results show that the gemini surfactant, used facilitates the formation of microemulsions compared with its corresponding monomeric surfactant, n‐dodecyl trimethylammonium bromide (DTAB). When S/A=1/1, and the total concentration of gemini surfactant and alcohol is 20–40%, microemulsions with higher water content can form in a wider region. When the temperature increases, the size and position of each type of microemulsion region changes notably.     

Oxidation in three-liquid-phase microemulsion systems using "Balanced Catalytic Surfactants"

A series of "Balanced Catalytic Surfactants" (BCS) [(Cn)2N(C1)2]2MoO4 (n = 8, 9, 10, 12) based on amphiphilic double-tailed quaternary ammonium with molybdate as a counterion has been developed for the dark singlet [4 + 2] cyclooxygenation of organic substrates in three-liquid-phase microemulsion systems. These cationic surfactants form three-liquid-phase microemulsion systems at room temperature in the presence of an appropriate organic solvent and water without addition of any cosurfactant or electrolyte. Comparative peroxidation of rubrene points out the specific advantages of these three-phase media over phase transfer catalysis in two phase systems and on conventional one-phase microemulsions based on sodium molybdate: (i) only three constituents, (ii) low amounts of surfactants, (iii) insensitivity to water dilution, (iv) fast separation of the three phases, (v) straightforward recovery of the product and the surfactant from the oil and microemulsion phases, respectively. The preparative peroxidation of alpha-terpinene and 1,4,5-trimethylnaphtalene was performed in the ternary systems [(C8)2N(C1)2]2MoO4/water/tert-butyl acetate or benzene. The reusability of the catalyst, the catalytic nature of the BCS, and the ability of the systems to oxidize poorly reactive substrates were demonstrated showing the broadness of the applicability of such systems.     

Tween-80–n-Butanol–Diesel–Water Microemulsion System—A Class of Alternative Diesel Fuel

Tween-80–n–butanol–diesel–water microemulsion systems with various surfactant:cosurfactant (S:C) ratio have been reported as a class of alternative diesel fuel from their phase behavior, clouding phenomena, conductivity, turbidity, and inflammation studies. Temperature induced clouding of microemulsion containing 2% brine at an S:C ratio of 1:1 from a suitable turbid zone has been examined to see the stability of the diesel–water microemulsion systems. Regression models have been proposed to understand the impact of various components of the microemulsion on their cloud point (CP) values. Conductivity of the microemulsions at various S:C ratio increases with the volume of brine having two cut points depicting the presence of three microheterogenous phases within the system, whereas turbidity shows a linear increase. Dye-probed investigation of water-rich and oil-rich zones of the microemulsions indicates the involvement of a dynamic mass transfer process within the various zones. The intensities of flames produced during burning of the microemulsions with various O:E:W weight percentages selected from the isotropic regions of the phase diagrams have been estimated using MATLAB image processing method and the impacts of various components on the fuel use of the microemulsions have been analyzed.     

BUTYL LACTATE: A USEFUL COSURFACTANT TO PREPARE O/W MICROEMULSIONS WITH SDS

The possibility of substitution of the conventional pentanol as cosurfactant by butyl lactate, on the preparation of OAV microemulsions in a system with SDS as anionic surfactant, is investigated. Whereas a narrow region of OAV microemulsion is described for the system with pentanol for a critical ratio 85/15 between water and SDS, butyl lactate leads to wider regions of solubility for different water/surfactant proportions, making easy the preparation of these microemulsions. Besides this advantage, being butyl lactate obtained from renewable resources and considered as a safe and biodegradable product, the microemulsions prepared with this cosurfactant could be applied in technological fields as cosmetic and dermopharmaceutical, where the biological agressivity of pentanol could avoid any practical application. As a complementary study, the influence that 1,3-buryleneglycol as polar cosolvent exert on the microemulsion regions, was also considered. Although according to experimental data given in the paper 1,3-butyleneglycol affects only slightly the OAV region of microemulsions, it can be foreseen that its presence could provide emollient characteristics to the final compositions.     

ALTERNATIVE COSURFACTANTS AND COSOLVENTS TO PREPARE MICROEMULSIONS SUITABLE FOR PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

Some examples of systems including useful ingredients as cosurfactants and cosolventsto furnish suitable microemulsions to be applicated in technological fields such as cosmetics and dermopharmaceuticals, are given For systems with ionic surfactants, the usual cosurfactant (medium chain lenght alcohol) was substituted by more skin compatible ingredients as butyl lactate, or alternatively by oleic acid and a glycol as cosolvent mixed in the aqueous phase of the system. On the other hand, for a system with an alkyl glucoside as nonionic surfactant, temperature - insensitive microemulsions was obtained also with butyl lactate as cosurfactant. Moreover, the influence that the presence of glycols as cosolvents involve on the isotropic liquid regions of such systems has been also evidenced. In conclusion, it is possible to formulate suitable microemulsions to practical applications, overcoming the traditional problems of the most of the conventional microemulsions as are the biological agressivity of the cosurfactant for ionic surfactant systems, and the temperature dependence for nonionic surfactant systems.     

Some selected problems of nonaqueous microemulsions — phase diagrams and variation of the composition in the quaternary and ternary systems

A variety of quaternary and ternary systems of the type of dodecane/aliphatic alcohols/Na-dodecyl sulphate/water or a water-replacing component (formamide, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, propylene carbonate, dimethylsulfoxide, acetonitrile) were subjected to a comparative analysis of microemulsification. The compositions of the systems of the type of oil/surfactant/cosurfactant/water or nonaqueous liquid were changed with respect to surfactant (Na-dodecyl sulfate and triton X 114) concentration, cosurfactant (homologous aliphatic alcohols) concentration and mixing ratio of water and water-replacing component. The appertaining phase diagrams were plotted and compared with those of aqueous systems.The experimental results suggest that the phase regions, which are designated as nonaqueous microemulsions, probably represent, not only microemulsions in the usual sense, but a separate kind of mixed phase whose microstructure is examined by special studies. Analogously to aqueous microemulsion systems, transparency and spontaneous formation of homogeneous multicomponent systems cannot serve as the sole criteria for waterless microemulsion formation. But they are important guiding properties of microemulsion formation in multicomponent systems.The variety of components involved in the chemical composition and the current insufficient knowledge do not permit to generally decide whether nonaqueous systems can be assigned to microemulsions or to molecular solutions. For clarifying this problem a detailed examination of the miscibility behavior, especially that of binary systems as a function of temperature, and the role that surfactant and cosurfactant play in the formation of homogeneous systems will be necessary.     

Temperature-induced phase separation in pseudoternary mixtures of Triton X-100–butanol–kerosene–water

The transparent Winsor IV domain in the phase diagram of the mixtures of emulsifier (Triton X-100 and butanol), oil (kerosene), and water is found to be 34% of the total phase diagram in presence of emulsifier with surfactant:cosurfactant::1:1, and is water dominant. Increase in cosurfactant/surfactant ratio inverts the Winsor IV domain to become oil rich. The plot of conductance of the microemulsions prepared by substituting water by brine against water content depicts the existence of three distinct phases like oil-in-water, bicontinuous, and water-in-oil microemulsion in the phase diagram. The phase contrast micrographs of the mixtures of different compositions in these three different phases reveal the existence of microdroplets of oil dispersed in water and water dispersed in oil. Further, the dynamic light scattering studies of these solutions reveal an inhomogeneity in the size distribution of the droplets. A temperature-induced clouding in the microemulsion domain leading to phase separation has been observed. Additives like glucose, sucrose, and sodium chloride decrease the cloud point (CP), while addition of ammonium thiocyanate increases it. A quantitative relationship of the clouding temperature with the composition of the microemulsion has been established. With increase in oil and emulsifier, the cloud point of the microemulsion increases. The separated phases after the clouding have been used for preconcentration of water-soluble metal ions as well as oil-soluble dyes. The turbid systems on heating led to separation into three isotropic phases which are found to be stable at ambient temperature. The stability of these phases is ascribed to the formation of stable microemulsions by mass transfer from one phase to other.     

DEA与SDS/n-C5H11OH/H2O微乳液的相互作用

以循环伏安法研究了N,N-二乙基苯胺（DEA）与十二烷基硫酸钠（SDS）/正戊醇（n-C5H11OH）/H2O体系O/W和W/O结构微乳液的相互作用.结果表明,DEA在SDS/n-C5H11OH/H2O体系微乳液中有两种定位方式:其一,DEA分子在微乳液液滴膜相中定位于表面活性剂和助表面活性剂的极性基团附近;其二,DEA分子在微乳液液滴膜相中定位于表面活性剂疏水基团一侧.两种定位的分布与微乳液的结构和组成相关.