Aggregation Number of Ionic Surfactants and its Application for Alkyltrimethyl Ammonium Bromides and Sodium Tetradecyl Sulfate by Potentiometric Technique

A potentiometric technique based on surfactant ion selective electrode has been used for various cationic and anionic surfactants. The data obtained contain m ₁ (surfactant monomer concentration); m ₂ (free counterion concentration) and α (degree of dissociation of micelle) were used for determination of aggregation number at and above cmc (critical micelle concentration). Data fitting show a relationship between aggregation number with such parameters. The correlation equation obtained shows that size of ionic micelle vary sharply after cmc. Also, the equation obtained shows size of micelle growth with increase in counterion concentration.     

Favorable interactions of amine- and ester-terminated PAMAM with cationic surfactants: photophysical and transport studies

Conductivity (kappa), turbidity (tau), and fluorescence (I1/I3) studies of hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (HTAB), hexadecylpyridinium bromide (HPyBr), and hexadecylpyridinium chloride (HPyCl) in aqueous poly(amido amine) (PAMAM) dendrimers of generations 0 to 2.5 G have been carried out. The complexation of surfactant monomers with the PAMAM surface groups is demonstrated by the critical aggregation concentration (cac), which is two to three orders of magnitude less than the micellization of cationic surfactants in aqueous PAMAM and denoted by critical micelle concentration (cmc*). In the presence of aqueous amine-terminated PAMAM, the cmc* value for each surfactant was much lower than the cmc in pure water, while they remain close to each other in the presence of aqueous ester-terminated PAMAM for each surfactant. The fluorescence studies demonstrated that both amine- and ester-terminated PAMAM interact with the cationic surfactants, though the mode of interaction varied due to the different nature of surface groups.     

含酯基Gemini表面活性剂在有机醇-水体系中的胶束热力学及聚集行为

采用电导法研究了不同温度下含酯基Gemini表面活性剂在纯水和在质量分数为10%的甲醇-水(MAWR),乙二醇-水(EG-WR),丙三醇-水(GL-WR)四种体系中的集聚行为和胶束热力学;聚集行为参数包括临界胶束浓度(cmc)和抗衡离子的解离程度(α)以及胶束的热力学参数,包括标准吉布斯自由能(ΔG_m~o)、吉布斯迁移自由能(ΔG_(trans)~o)、吉布斯烷基链胶束化自由能(ΔG_(tail)~o)、标准焓变(ΔH_m~o)和标准熵变(ΔS_m~o),均被计算和讨论。研究表明在所有的研究体系中,cmc值随着疏水链的增加而减小,随着加入的醇结构中羟基数目的增加而增大,随温度的升高先变小,后变大呈U字形;胶束化过程都是自发进行的,并且在293.15 K下,胶束化过程是吸热的,在293.15 K上,胶束化过程是放热的;通过稳态荧光光谱法研究了表面活性剂在纯水、有机醇-水混合溶液中的微极性,结果表明,在相同溶剂中,随着烷基链长度的增加,溶液微环境的疏水性越强;对于相同的Gemini表面活性剂,随着加入含羟基数目越多的醇,其微环境的疏水性越强。并研究了Gemini表面活性剂在混合体系中形成胶束过程的焓-熵补偿曲线。     

Surfactant polymer interactions between strongly interacting cationic surfactants and anionic polyelectrolytes from conductivity and turbidity measurements

The interactions between oppositely charged surfactant/polymer mixtures have been studied using conductivity and turbidity measurements. The dependence of aggregation phenomenon on the chain length and head group modifications of conventional cationic surfactants, i.e., hexadecyl- (HTAB), tetradecyl- (TTAB), and dodecyltrimethylammonium bromides (DTAB) and dimeric cationic surfactants, i.e., decyl- (DeDGB) and dodecyldimethylgemini bromides (DDGB), is investigated. It was observed that cationic surfactants induce cooperative binding with anionic polyelectrolytes at critical aggregation concentration (cac). The cac values are considerably lower than the critical micelle concentration (cmc) values for the same surfactant. After the complete complexation, free micelles are formed at the apparent critical micelle concentration (acmc), which is slightly higher in aqueous polyelectrolyte than in pure water. Among the conventional and dimeric cationic surfactants, DTAB and DeDGB, respectively, have been found to have least interactions with oppositely charged polyelectrolytes.     

Micelle formation of N-(1,1-dihydroperfluorooctyl)- and N-(1,1-dihydroperfluorononyl)-N,N,N-trimethylammonium chlorides

Micelle formation of N-(1,1-dihydroperfluorooctyl)-N,N,N- and N-(1,1-dihydroperfluorononyl)-N,N,N-trimethylammonium chloride was investigated by analyzing the concentration dependence of the electric conductivity and of the activity of the counterion (Cl(-)) of the solution. The three micellization parameters for ionic surfactants, the micellization constant K(n), the micelle aggregation number n, and the number of counterions per micelle m, were determined by combination of electric conductivity and counterion concentration. The present analysis employed two slopes of the plots of specific conductivity against surfactant concentration below and above the critical micelle concentration and the mass action model of micelle formation. The aggregation numbers thus obtained were relatively small, while the degrees of counterion binding to the micelle (m/n) were found to be quite large, much larger than expected from the small aggregation numbers. Thermodynamical parameters of the micellization were evaluated from the temperature dependence of the three parameters, and the micellization of the fluorinated surfactant was found to be enthalpy-driven. A CF(2) group in the perfluorocarbon chain was found to be 1.44 times larger in hydrophobicity for micellization than a CH(2) group in the hydrocarbon chain.     

Surfactants with an amide group "spacer": Synthesis of 3-(acylaminopropyl)trimethylammonium chlorides and their aggregation in aqueous solutions

The cationic surfactants RCONH(CH2)3N+(CH3)3Cl-, where RCO = C10, C12, C14, and C16, respectively, have been synthesized by reacting the appropriate carboxylic acids with 3-N,N-dimethylamino-1-propylamine, followed by dehydration of the ammonium salt produced. Reaction of the intermediates obtained (RCONH(CH2)3N(CH3)2) with methyl iodide, followed by chloride/iodide ion-exchange furnished the surfactants. Their adsorption and aggregation in aqueous solutions have been studied by surface tension, conductivity, EMF, static light scattering and FTIR. Additional information on the micellar structure was secured from effects of the medium on the 1H NMR chemical shifts and 2D ROESY spectra. Increasing the length of the acyl moiety increased the micelle aggregation number, and decreased the minimum area/surfactant molecule at the solution/air interface, the critical micelle concentration, and the degree of dissociation of the counter-ion. Gibbs free energies of adsorption at the solution/air interface and of micelle formation were calculated, and compared to those of 2-(acylaminoethyl)trimethylammonium chloride; alkyl trimethylammonium chloride; and benzyl(3-acylaminopropyl)dimethylammonium chloride surfactants. For both processes (adsorption and micellization), contributions of the CH2 groups in the hydrophobic tail and of the head-group to DeltaG0 were calculated. The former contribution was found to be similar to those of other cationic surfactants, whereas the latter one is more negative than those of 2-(acylaminoethyl)trimethylammonium chlorides and trimethylammonium chlorides. This is attributed to a combination of increased hydrophobicity of the head-group, and (direct- or water-mediated) intermolecular hydrogen-bonding of aggregated monomers, via the amide group. FTIR and NMR results indicated that the amide group lies at the micellar interface.     

Micelle formation by N-alkyl-N-methylpyrrolidinium bromide in aqueous solution

The micellization of the ionic liquid N-alkyl-N-methylpyrrolidinium bromide (C(n)MPB, n = 12, 14 and 16) in aqueous solutions was investigated by surface tension measurements, electrical conductivity and static luminescence quenching. The effectiveness of the surface tension reduction (Π(cmc)), maximum surface excess concentration (Γ(max)) and the minimum area (A(min)) occupied per surfactant molecule at the air/water interface can be obtained from the surface tension measurements at 25 °C. The critical micelle concentration (cmc) at different temperatures and a series of thermodynamic parameters (ΔG, ΔH and ΔS) of micellization were evaluated from electrical conductivity measurements in the temperature range of 25-45 °C. The thermodynamic parameters show that the micelle formation is entropy-driven at low temperature and enthalpy-driven at high temperature. Furthermore, the micelle aggregation number (N(agg)) of C(n)MPB was calculated according to the Turro-Yekta method through static luminescence quenching and found that N(agg) (49, 55, and 59) increased with the hydrophobic chain length of C(n)MPB.     

Surface-active, micellar, and antielectrostatic properties of bis-ammonium salts

A series of new cationic surfactants, bis-quaternary ammonium dibromides, were synthesized. The properties of these surfactants were characterized by surface tension measurements, conductivity study, and dynamic light scattering. The surface properties, such as surface excess concentration, Gamma(cmc), surface area demand per molecule, A(min), efficiency in surface tension reduction, pC(20), the effectiveness of surface tension reduction, gamma(min), critical micelle concentration, cmc, and standard free energy of micellization, DeltaG(mic)(0) and DeltaG(ads)(0), were obtained by means of surface tension measurements. The antielectrostatic properties were investigated by measuring the surface resistance, the half-charge decay time, and the maximum voltage induced on polyethylene films and propylene unwoven fabrics. Critical micellar concentrations (cmc) of investigated salts were much lower than those of the monomeric salt DTAC. The results obtained in this work were compared to analogous bis-quaternary ammonium dichlorides and well-known gemini cationic surfactants. It was found that the type of counterion had an impact on the values of the micelle ionization degree and the hydrodynamic diameters. Larger aggregates were found for bis-quaternary ammonium dibromides, which had smaller values of the ionization micelle degree than bis-quaternary ammonium dichlorides. Moreover, the antielectrostatic effect strongly depended on the kind of counterion. All investigated salts had very good antistatic properties.     

Structural organization of cetyltrimethylammonium sulfate in aqueous solution: The effect of Na2SO4

We used dynamic light scattering (DLS), steady-state fluorescence, time resolved fluorescence quenching (TRFQ), tensiometry, conductimetry, and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) to investigate the self-assembly of the cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium sulfate (CTAS) in aqueous solution, which has SO(2-)4 as divalent counterion. We obtained the critical micelle concentration (cmc), aggregation number (N(agg)), area per monomer (a0), hydrodynamic radius (R(H)), and degree of counterion dissociation (alpha) of CTAS micelles in the absence and presence of up to 1 M Na2SO4 and at temperatures of 25 and 40 degrees C. Between 0.01 and 0.3 M salt the hydrodynamic radius of CTAS micelle R(H) approximately 16 A is roughly independent on Na2SO4 concentration; below and above this concentration range R(H) increases steeply with the salt concentration, indicating micelle structure transition, from spherical to rod-like structures. R(H) increases only slightly as temperature increases from 25 to 40 degrees C, and the cmc decreases initially very steeply with Na2SO4 concentration up to about 10 mM, and thereafter it is constant. The area per surfactant at the water/air interface, a0, initially increases steeply with Na2SO4 concentration, and then decreases above ca. 10 mM. Conductimetry gives alpha = 0.18 for the degree of counterion dissociation, and N(agg) obtained by fluorescence methods increases with surfactant concentration but it is roughly independent of up to 80 mM salt. The ITC data yield cmc of 0.22 mM in water, and the calculated enthalpy change of micelle formation, Delta H(mic) = 3.8 kJ mol(-1), Gibbs free energy of micellization of surfactant molecules, Delta G(mic) = -38.0 kJ mol(-1) and entropy TDelta S(mic) = 41.7 kJ mol(-1) indicate that the formation of CTAS micelles is entropy-driven.     

Molecular-thermodynamic theory of micellization of multicomponent surfactant mixtures: 1. Conventional (pH-Insensitive) surfactants

A molecular-thermodynamic (MT) theory was developed to model the micellization of mixtures containing an arbitrary number of conventional (pH-insensitive) surfactants. The theory was validated by comparing predicted and experimental cmc's of ternary surfactant mixtures, yielding results that were comparable to, and sometimes better than, the cmc's determined using regular solution theory. The theory was also used to model a commercial nonionic surfactant (Genapol UD-079), which was modeled as a mixture of 16 surfactant components. The predicted cmc agreed well with the experimental cmc, and the monomer concentration was predicted to increase significantly above the cmc. In addition, the monomer and the micelle compositions were predicted to vary significantly with surfactant concentration. These composition variations were rationalized in terms of competing steric and entropic effects and a micelle shape transition near the cmc. To understand the packing constraints imposed on ternary surfactant mixtures better, the maximum micelle radius was also examined theoretically. The MT theory presented here represents the first molecular-based theory of the micellization behavior of mixtures of three or more conventional surfactants. In article 2 of this series, the MT theory will be extended to model the micellization of mixtures of conventional and pH-sensitive surfactants.     

Structural effects on surface and micellar properties of alkanediyl-alpha, omega-bis(sodium N-acyl-beta-alaninate) gemini surfactants

A study of the equilibrium surface properties (in water and in the presence of 0.01 M NaCl) of a novel series of anionic gemini surfactants, alkanediyl-alpha,omega-bis(sodium N-acyl-beta-alaninates), is described. Parameters studied include cmc (critical micelle concentration), C20 (required to reduce the surface tension of the solvent by 20 mN/m), gamma(cmc) (the surface tension at the cmc), Gamma(max) (the maximum surface excess concentration at the air/aqueous solution interface), Amin (the minimum area per surfactant molecule at the air/water interface), and the cmc/C20 ratio (a measure of the tendency to form micelles relative to adsorb at the air/water interface). The geminis with a spacer consisting of two methylene groups show premicellar self-aggregation, both in water and in 0.01 M NaCl, when the N-acyl group contains more than 12 carbon atoms; geminis with a spacer consisting of four methylene groups show no premicellar aggregation even when the N-acyl group contains 16 carbon atoms. For the acyl chain lengths where premicellar aggregation does not occur, the values of the cmc of the geminis with a two-methylene spacer are lower than those for the corresponding analogous geminis with a four-methylene spacer. The premicellar formation for the geminis with a two-methylene spacer is due to the short-chain linkage. The geminis show little or no break in their specific conductance-surfactant molar concentration plots and an increase in the pH at the cmc. This is attributed to protonation of the carboxylate group and strong Na+ release during micellization.     

Effect of head group size, temperature and counterion specificity on cationic micelles

The critical micelle concentration (cmc) and ionisation degree (α), of micelles of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTABr), cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTACl), cetyltripropylammonium bromide (CTPABr) and cetyltripropylammonium chloride (CTPACl) have been measured over a narrow temperature range at 2 degree intervals using electrical conductivity. CTPACl and CTPABr are very soluble in water and were measured in the temperature range 275.15-323.15K. The Krafft temperatures for CTABr and for CTACl are 293.15K and 284.15K, respectively and established a lower temperature limit for our studies on these two surfactants. The cmc vs temperature curves have a smooth minimum near room temperature and α linearly increases with temperature. The changes of cmc and α with temperature are smaller than those associated with the modification of head group size or counterion nature. Using these results, basic thermodynamic quantities associated with the phenomena of micellization have been evaluated. Thermodynamic properties of the surfactant solutions were discussed in terms of temperature dependence of the free energy, enthalpy and entropy of micellization. A close similarity between the effects of change in temperature on protein folding and micellization process appears from the data.     

Thermodynamics of micellization of multiheaded single-chain cationic surfactants

The energetics of micelle formation of three single-chain cationic surfactants bearing single (h = 1), double (h = 2), and triple (h = 3) trimethylammonium [(+)N(CH(3))(3)] headgroups have been investigated by microcalorimetry. The results were compared with the microcalorimetric data obtained from well-known cationic surfactant, cetyl trimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), bearing a single chain and single headgroup. The critical micellar concentrations (cmc's) and the degrees of counterion dissociation (alpha) of micelles of these surfactants were also determined by conductometry. The cmc and the alpha values increased with the increase in the number of headgroups of the surfactant. The relationship between the cmc of the surfactant in solution and its free energy of micellization (DeltaG(m)) was derived for each surfactant. Exothermic enthalpies of micellization (DeltaH(m)) and positive entropies of micellization (DeltaS(m)) were observed for all the surfactants. Negative DeltaH(m) values increased from CTAB to h = 1 to h = 2 and decreased for h = 3 whereas DeltaS(m) values decreased with increase in the number of headgroups. The DeltaG(m) values progressively became less negative with the increase in the number of headgroups. This implies that micelle formation becomes progressively less favorable as more headgroups are incorporated in the surfactant. From the steady-state fluorescence measurements using pyrene as a probe, the micropolarities sensed by the probe inside various micelles were determined. These studies suggest that the micelles are more hydrated with multiheaded surfactants and the micropolarity of micelles increases with the increase in the number of headgroups.     

Conductometric study of antidepressant drug-cationic surfactant mixed micelles in aqueous solution

Conductivity measurements have been carried out on aqueous solutions of two antidepressant drugs (nortriptyline hydrochloride and clomipramine hydrochloride) with four cationic surfactants (monomeric: cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, tetradecylammonium bromide; dimeric: 1,5-pentanediyl-alpha-omega-bis(hexadecyldimethylammonium bromide), 1,4-butanediyl-alpha,omega-bis(hexadecyldimethylammonium bromide) as well as with sodium chloride. Counterions from NaCl adsorb to the charged headgroup of the drug molecules and reduce the repulsion, hence cmc decreases. cmc values decreased with the addition of surfactants indicating mixed micelle formation. Experimental mole fraction of surfactants in micelle (X1) and their ideal values (X1 id) also support this explanation. Interaction parameter, beta, and excess free energy of micellization are negative suggesting synergism in mixed state. Activity coefficients are less than unity which means non-ideal mixing.     

Effect of the nature of the spacer on the aggregation properties of gemini surfactants in an aqueous solution

The aggregation properties of three dicationic quaternary ammonium gemini surfactants with the same structure, except the spacer group, diethyl ether, six methylene, and p-xylyl, have been studied using electrical conductivity and fluorescence. The critical micelle concentration (cmc) and the micelle aggregation number (N) were determined, and the micropolarity and the microviscosity of the micelle were characterized. The micelle ionization degree (alpha) was obtained by a combination of the electrical conductivity data and the micelle aggregation number. Furthermore, the Gibbs free energy of micellization (deltaGmic) was studied. These results have shown that the nature of the spacer has an important effect on the aggregation properties of gemini surfactants in an aqueous solution. A hydrophilic, flexible spacer prompts micelle formation, which leads to a smaller cmc, smaller alpha, larger N, and more negative deltaGmic. Meanwhile, the microviscosity study indicates that the gemini surfactant with a hydrophilic, flexible spacer forms a more closely packed micelle structure than the one with a hydrophobic, rigid spacer.     

Micelle formation of nonionic surfactants in a room temperature ionic liquid, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate: surfactant chain length dependence of the critical micelle concentration

Micellization behavior was investigated for polyoxyethylene-type nonionic surfactants with varying chain length (C(n)E(m)) in a room temperature ionic liquid, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate (bmimBF(4)). Critical micelle concentration (cmc) was determined from the variation of (1)H NMR chemical shift with the surfactant concentration. The logarithmic value of cmc decreased linearly with the number of carbon atoms in the surfactant hydrocarbon chain, similarly to the case observed in aqueous surfactant solutions. However, the slope of the straight line is much smaller in bmimBF(4) than in aqueous solution. Thermodynamic parameters for micelle formation estimated from the temperature dependence of cmc showed that the micellization in bmimBF(4) is an entropy-driven process around room temperature. This behavior is also similar to the case in aqueous solution. However, the magnitude of the entropic contribution to the overall micellization free energy in bmimBF(4) is much smaller compared with that in aqueous solution. These results suggest that the micellization in bmimBF(4) proceeds through a mechanism similar to the hydrophobic interaction in aqueous surfactant solutions, although the solvophobic effect in bmimBF(4) is much weaker than the hydrophobic effect.     

Analysis of interfacial and micellar behavior of sodium dioctyl sulphosuccinate salt (AOT) with zwitterionic surfactants in aqueous media

The interfacial and bulk properties of mixtures of the anionic surfactant (dioctyl sulphosuccinate sodium salt, AOT) with zwitterionic surfactants 3-(N,N-dimethyldodecylammonio) propane sulfonate (DPS), 3-(N,N-dimethyltetradecylammonio) propane sulfonate (TPS), 3-(N,N-dimethylhexadecylammonio) propane sulfonate (HPS) have been studied employing surface tension, fluorescence, and viscometric techniques in aqueous media at 25 °C. It is observed that these mixtures exhibit synergism and these synergistic interactions increase with the enhancement of the hydrocarbon chain of the zwitterionic surfactant. The various physicochemical properties such as critical micelle concentration (cmc), surface excess concentration (Г(max)), minimum area per molecule (A(min)), aggregation number (N(agg)), interaction parameters (β(σ), β(m)), and thermodynamic parameters such as standard Gibbs free energy of adsorption (ΔG(ads)(o)), excess free energy of micellization (ΔG(ex)), and standard Gibbs free energy of micellization (ΔG(m)(o)) have been evaluated. The negative values of ΔG(m)(o) and ΔG(ads)(o) show that the micelle formation and adsorption of surfactant at the air/solution interface is energetically favorable, while a negative value of ΔG(ex) ensures stability of the mixed micelles formed. The Regular Solution Approximation, Motomura and Rosen's approaches have been used to explain and compare the results. The packing parameter (p) ensures the formation of vesicles or bilayers for AOT+DPS/TPS mixtures, which can potentially be used as delivery agents for industrial applications.     

Characteristics of aggregation in aqueous solutions of dialkylpyrrolidinium bromides

Three pyrrolidinium-based ionic liquids-N-dodecyl-N-methylpyrrolidinium bromide, N-butyl-N-octylpyrrolidinium bromide, and N-butyl-N-dodecylpyrrolodinium bromide-were synthesized and characterized by their decomposition temperatures (T(d)) measured by thermogravimetric analysis, and by their melting point (T(m)), glass transition (T(g)) and crystallization temperatures (T(cryst)) determined by differential scanning calorimetry. Their self-aggregation properties in aqueous solution were studied and their behavior is compared with that of analogous conventional cationic surfactants, namely tetra-alkylammonium bromide salts. The critical micellar concentration, cmcs were obtained by isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC); which were further validated by measurements of interfacial tension, fluorescence and NMR spectroscopy. Enthalpies of micellization were measured at three different temperatures using ITC. The Taylor dispersion method and DOSY NMR were used to determine diffusion coefficients of the ionic liquid surfactants in aqueous solution at 298.15K. Several correlations between structural features of the surfactant species, such as the number and size of their alkyl chains, and the thermodynamic quantities of micellization-expressed by experimental values of cmc, counter-ion binding fraction, Δ(mic)G°, Δ(mic)°, and Δ(mic)S°-are established. We could interpret the different contributions of the two alkyl side chains to the aggregation properties in terms of the balance of interactions in homogeneous and micellar phases, contributing to understanding the aggregation behavior of ionic liquids in water and the parallel between these systems and traditional ionic surfactants.