Phase Transitions in Non-ionic Detergent Micelles

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) studies of micellar, 60 mM solutions of the octaethyleneglycol alkylethers C₁₄E₈ and C₁₆E₈ provide evidence for a narrow endothermic transition at 41 and 32°C,respectively, characterized by an enthalpy change of 2 kJ mol⁻¹ for both detergents. The observed thermal transition is indicative of a concerted transition of the surfactant molecules, as illustrated on the basis of a simple molecular model. The effect of co-solvents such as different alcohols on the thermal transition is investigated. Glycerol markedly lowers the transition temperature whereas the transition is absent in the presence of at least 10% ethanol. The calorimetric transition correlates with the temperature dependent increase of viscosity and static light scattering as well as with changes observed by small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). The SANS results provide clear evidence for a distinct structural change occurring at the transition temperature, which is interpreted as a sphere-to-rod transition of the detergent micelles. Moreover, the rod length increases with increasing temperature. We suggest that the process causing the thermal transition acts as the prerequisite of the growth process. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

氰戊菊酯微乳液相行为及其结构转变

氰戊菊酯微乳液相行为及其结构转变;相行为; 微乳液; 电导率; 氰戊菊酯     

Triton X-100/C10H21OH/H2O体系微乳液与溶致液晶

关于离子型表面活性剂生成的微乳液与溶致液晶已有不少研究，非离子型表面活性剂生成的微乳液与港致液晶的应用正在引起人们的重视，但由于药物提纯的困难，对其物理化学性质的研究还不多见．本文以非离子表面活性剂TritonX－100／C10H21OH／H2O体系为例，研究了非离子型表面活性剂微乳液和溶致液晶的生成及其结构特性．1实验部分试剂ThitonX－100（Aldrich公司，分析纯）正癸醇（分析纯）、水为一次蒸馏水微乳液区域和层状液晶区域的确定方法及小角x射线衍射测定方法同文献，实验温度20±0．1℃．2结果与讨论2·IThtonX－100、CIOH…     

Application of Cryo-Transmission Electronic Microscopy in Sodium Dodecylsutfonate Middle Phase Microemulsion

The middle phase microemulsion of Sodium Dodecylsulfonate / 2-Phenyloxyethanol / heptane / Brine was studied at optimal salinity. The fact that structure nonhomogeneity develops upon standing was revealed by cryo-TEM, polarizing microscopy and small angle X-ray diffraction. The structural complexity in this middle phase microemulsion is demonstrated and the cause of structure transformation from spherical micelles to thread-like ones, then to vesicles and to lamellar phase was analyzed using a concentration gradient of surfactant and cosurfactant in the middle phase microemulsion. This experiment also shows the advantages of this new cryo-TEM method.     

卵磷脂/正丙醇/肉豆蔻酸异丙酯/水微乳体系的相结构研究

以卵磷脂为表面活性剂,正丙醇为助表面活性剂,肉豆蔻酸异丙酯(IPM)为油相,配制成W/O型微乳。并通过浊点法、电导法、动态光散射法(DLS)以及差示扫描量热法(DSC)研究了微乳相结构随含水量的变化。对于选定配比微乳,浊点法在含水量超过10.71%时变浑浊;电导率在含水量达到3.85%之前增长缓慢,之后快速增大,含水量超过10.71%时电导率下降;DLS显示微乳粒径随含水量先减小后增大,其转折点在5.66%,而含水量超过10.71%后粒径突增3个数量级;DSC曲线在含水量超过3.85%后出现水的结晶峰,且随含水量的增大峰位往高温方向平移,同时峰面积增大。当含水量达到11.5%时出现两水峰叠加。研究表明含水量在3.85%~5.66%范围内属于W/O向双连续相转变的过程,而含水量10.71%则是体系发生相分离的临界点。     

Structural Phase Transitions of Aliphatic Nylons Viewed from the Simultaneous Measurements of WAXD and SAXS

Structural changes occurring in the high temperature region of doubly-oriented nylon 10/10 sample have been investigated through the temperature-dependent simultaneous measurements of wide-angle and small-angle X-ray scatterings, and the results were compared with the infrared spectral data as well as the molecular dynamics simulation results. In the Brill transition region of 150–180 °C the methylene segments are conformationally disordered with keeping the intermolecular hydrogen bonds. During this phase transition the stacked lamellar structure did not change very much: the lamellae are tilted by ca. 34° from the draw axis and the long period is almost 160 Å. In the temperature region immediately below the melting point the molecular chains were found to be contracted by ca. 10% the original repeating period and the intermolecular hydrogen bonds were almost broken, causing the violent rotational and translational motions of the chains around the chain axis. At the same time the long period increased remarkably from 160 Å to 410 Å and the originally tilted lamellae stood up in parallel to the draw axis.     

层状液晶乳液的相行为

层状液晶乳液的相行为;层状液晶(LLC);相转变温度;示差扫描量热法(DSC);小角X射线衍射(SAXD)     

Comparative Study of Scattering and Osmotic Properties of Synthetic and Biopolymer Gels

Summary: The effect of monovalent/divalent cation exchange on the structure and osmotic properties of chemically cross-linked polyacrylate and DNA gels swollen in near physiological salt solutions has been investigated. Both systems exhibit a reversible volume phase transition in the presence of calcium ions. The small-angle neutron scattering spectra of these gels display qualitatively similar features. At low values of q surface scattering is observed, while in the intermediate q range the signal is characteristic of scattering from rod-like elements. At high values of q the scattering intensity is governed by the local (short-range) geometry of the polymer chains. The competition between monovalent and divalent cations has been studied by anomalous small-angle X-ray scattering (ASAXS). The ASAXS results reveal that the local concentration of the divalent counter-ions in the vicinity of the polymer chains significantly exceeds that of the monovalent counter-ions.     

Phase behavior of sucrose monoalkanoate in a water-long-chain alcohol system

Phase diagram of a water/sucrose monododecanoate (SE)/hexanol system was determined at 30°C. Aqueous micellar, reverse micellar, normal hexagonal liquid crystalline, and lamellar liquid crystalline phases appear in the phase diagram. The change in interlayer spacing and interfacial section area of surfactant in the liquid crystalline phases was investigated by small-angle x-ray scattering. Upon addition of water, the section area and the radius of cylindrical aggregates are almost constant in a hexagonal liquid crystal, whereas the distance between each cylinder is separated on the water-SE axis. The interlayer spacing slightly decreases or is almost unchanged on the surfactant-hexanol axis, because alcohol molecules penetrate into the palisade of bilayers. Although the average section area decreases with increasing alcohol content, each section area of SE and alcohol molecules are kept constant. Since the interfacial section area of alcohol is less than the section area of hydrocarbon chain, the phase transition from lamellar liquid crystal to reverse micelle occurs in an alcohol-rich region.     

溶致液晶中金属纳米粒子的掺杂及其作用机制研究

在用琥珀酸二异辛酯磺酸钠(AOT)构建的具有长程有序结构的层状溶致液晶内, 用不同方式导入预制的亲油或亲水贵金属纳米粒子, 可得到纳米粒子分布在不同介观空间内的无机/有机杂合体. 依据小角X射线散射和偏光显微镜结果, 通过分析掺杂纳米粒子与液晶模板的相互作用, 对掺杂前后体系结构的变化及制得杂合体的稳定性进行了表征. 结果表明, 除考虑掺杂粒子与层状模板空间的匹配外, 体系中静电斥力、范德华引力和Helfrich涨落力之间的平衡是维持液晶结构稳定的基本条件.     

Shape and Structure Formation of Mixed Nonionic–Anionic Surfactant Micelles

Aqueous solutions of a nonionic surfactant (either Tween20 or BrijL23) and an anionic surfactant (sodium dodecyl sulfate, SDS) are investigated, using small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). SANS spectra are analysed by using a core-shell model to describe the form factor of self-assembled surfactant micelles; the intermicellar interactions are modelled by using a hard-sphere Percus–Yevick (HS-PY) or a rescaled mean spherical approximation (RMSA) structure factor. Choosing these specific nonionic surfactants allows for comparison of the effect of branched (Tween20) and linear (BrijL23) surfactant headgroups, both constituted of poly-ethylene oxide (PEO) groups. The nonionic–anionic surfactant mixtures are studied at various concentrations up to highly concentrated samples (ϕ ≲ 0.45) and various mixing ratios, from pure nonionic to pure anionic surfactant solutions. The scattering data reveal the formation of mixed micelles already at concentrations below the critical micelle concentration of SDS. At higher volume fractions, excluded volume effects dominate the intermicellar structuring, even for charged micelles. In consequence, at high volume fractions, the intermicellar structuring is the same for charged and uncharged micelles. At all mixing ratios, almost spherical mixed micelles form. This offers the opportunity to create a system of colloidal particles with a variable surface charge. This excludes only roughly equimolar mixing ratios (X≈ 0.4–0.6) at which the micelles significantly increase in size and ellipticity due to specific sulfate–EO interactions.     

Ionic and pH effects on the osmotic properties and structure of polyelectrolyte gels

We investigate the effects of salt concentration and pH on neutralized poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) gels in near physiological salt solutions. Either adding calcium ions or decreasing the pH is found to induce reversible volume transitions but the nature of these transitions seems to be different. For example, the osmotic pressure exhibits a simple power law dependence on the concentration as the transition is approached in both systems, but the power law exponent n is substantially different in the two cases. On decreasing the pH the value of n gradually increases from 2.1 (at pH = 7) to 3.2 (at pH = 1). By contrast, n decreases with increasing calcium ion concentration from 2.1 (in 100 mM NaCl solution) to 1.6 (0.8 mM CaCl₂ in 100 mM NaCl solution). In both systems, a strong increase of the small-angle neutron scattering intensity (SANS) is observed near the volume transition. The SANS results reveal that calcium ions favor the formation of linearly aligned regions in PAA gels. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 46: 2803–2810, 2008     

SDS/苯甲醇/H2O体系的相行为与结构

SDS／苯甲醇／H2O体系能生成胶束、微乳液、层状液晶、六角状液晶等分子有序组合作，它们之间转换关系可以从凝聚能理论得到解释．来甲酸在O／W微乳液中的分配系数K＝168，表明绝大多数苯甲醇被增溶于SDS胶束相内．随重量比本甲醇／SDS增加，层状液晶中的do值几乎不变，溶剂渗透率略有增加，六角状液晶中圆柱缔合体的半径r值几乎不变，溶剂渗透率增加．     

Segmental,Domain‐Selective Perdeuteration and Small‐Angle Neutron Scattering for Structural Analysis of Multi‐Domain Proteins

Multi‐domain proteins play critical roles in fine‐tuning essential processes in cellular signaling and gene regulation. Typically, multiple globular domains that are connected by flexible linkers undergo dynamic rearrangements upon binding to protein, DNA or RNA ligands. RNA binding proteins (RBPs) represent an important class of multi‐domain proteins, which regulate gene expression by recognizing linear or structured RNA sequence motifs. Here, we employ segmental perdeuteration of the three RNA recognition motif (RRM) domains in the RBP TIA‐1 using Sortase A mediated protein ligation. We show that domain‐selective perdeuteration combined with contrast‐matched small‐angle neutron scattering (SANS), SAXS and computational modeling provides valuable information to precisely define relative domain arrangements. The approach is generally applicable to study conformational arrangements of individual domains in multi‐domain proteins and changes induced by ligand binding.     

Structure of Escherichia coli dUTPase in Solution: A Small Angle Neutron Scattering Study

The present study investigates shape properties of the enzyme dUTPase from Escherichia coli in the solution phase. In this work small angle neutron scattering (SANS) findings on dUTPase/D₂O solutions for temperature values of T = 8 °C and T = 37 °C are presented. The analysis of SANS data, carried out by using a prolate ellipsoid core/shell model fitting and the well‐known Guinier and Zimm analysis procedures allows the characterization of the shape of the protein in solution. By means of the comparison with experimental and theoretical data existing in literature on dUTPase in the crystalline state, we find that the protein in solution maintains its dimensions before the denaturation process. Furthermore, by analyzing the SANS spectra of dUTPase/D₂O/trehalose solutions, we emphasize the bioprotective effects of trehalose on the protein.

Structure of dUTPase.     

Observation of Ion Electrosorption in Metal–Organic Framework Micropores with In Operando Small‐Angle Neutron Scattering

A molecular‐level understanding of transport and adsorption mechanisms of electrolyte ions in nanoporous electrodes under applied potentials is essential to control the performance of double‐layer capacitors. Here, in operando small‐angle neutron scattering (SANS) is used to directly detect ion movements into the nanopores of a conductive metal–organic framework (MOF) electrode under operating conditions. Neutron‐scattering data reveals that most of the void space within the MOF is accessible to the solvent. Upon the addition of the electrolyte sodium triflate (NaOTf), the ions are adsorbed on the outer surface of the protrusions to form a 30 Å layer instead of entering the ionophobic pores in the absence of an applied charging potential. The changes in scattering intensity when potentials are applied suggests the ion rearrangement in the micropores following different mechanisms depending on the electrode polarization. These observations shed insights on ion electrosorption in electrode materials.     

Structure of a Lamellar Phase Formed by Non-ionic Surfactant and Water: Effects of shear flow

We have investigated effects of shear flow on the structure of lamellar phase in hepta(oxyethylene glycol)—n—hexadecylether—water system using small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) under shear flow at the shear rates (

Neutron Scattering Studies of Structure and Self-Assembly of Star-Shaped Polymers with Fullerene Centres in Solutions

Protonated star-shaped polystyrenes with single and double fullerene C₆₀ core and the hybrid stars with pairs of polar and non-polar arms (tertbuthylmetacrylate, polystyrene) have been studied in deuterated toluene (20 °C) by small-angle neutron scattering at low and moderate polymer concentrations (c₁ ∼ 1 g/dl, c₂ ∼ 3–6 g/dl) to evaluate the peculiarities of fullerene centre action on polymers self-assembly in solutions. As we found, the cores composed of two fullerenes, linked via Si(CH₃)₂-bridge, induce stars' anisotropic interactions and association into chain-like structures (correlation radius ∼400–600 nm). Meanwhile, the single-core stars of polystyrene and hybrids organize globular clusters (size ∼ 10³ nm) those geometry do not change significantly by polymer content variation.     

Raman and Neutron Scattering Study of Partially Deuterated L‐Alanine: Evidence of a Solid‐Solid Phase Transition

Raman and neutron experiments using specific isotope labeling were combined in order to study the dynamics and structure of L ‐alanine. Inelastic neutron and Raman scattering data of C₂H₄(ND₂)CO₂D are discussed in relation to the doubling of the lattice parameter a observed by means of neutron powder diffraction in C₂D₄ (NH₂)CO₂H. The major changes accompanying the phase transition are found in the vibrational frequencies involving the torsional vibration τ(CO₂^?), which is clearly affected by the hydrogen bonds between the protons of the ammonium group and the oxygen atoms of the carboxylate group. At lower temperatures the rearrangement of identifiable hydrogen bonds induces changes in the bending vibration δ(ND₃), confirming some orientational disorder.