Thermodynamics of micellization of ionic surfactant/alkoxyethanol mixed micelles as a function of temperature

Estimates of the thermodynamic parameters of micellization ((_micG°, (_micH°, and (_micS°) have been determined for a series of mixed micelles consisting of ionic surfactants (sodium dodecylsulfate and dodecyltrimethylamonium bromide) and medium chain length alkoxyethanols as the co surfactant. The enthalpies of micellization have been measured directly for the above systems using isoperibol solution calorimetry; the Gibbs energies and entropies of micellization are obtained by application of the mass-action model to the critical micelle concentration values from the calorimetric titration experiments. The thermodynamic properties of mixed micelle formation with alcohol concentration and temperature are in excellent agreement with our previous results. However, there does appear to be some dependence of the thermodynamic properties of mixed micelle formation on the charge of the ionic surfactant. These dependencies are discussed in terms of the manner in which the ethylene oxide group of the alcohol interacts with the ionic head groups and the location of the solubilizates in the micellar interior.