Dissociation of acids in aqueous micellar systems

Incorporation in charged micelles induces large pKa shifts for a number of acids of varying type. Analysis of the measurements in terms of simple electrostatic theory is reasonably satisfactory in view of uncertainties regarding the net charge on the micelle and the exact character of its surface. The behavior of the long-chain fatty acids, whose mode of incorporation in micelles is least uncertain, confirms the suggestion of others that the effective dielectric constant at the micellar surface is quite low.