Adsorption behavior of phospholipid vesicles at oil/water interfaces

By measuring the change in interfacial tension after adding phospholipid vesicles to an aqueous solution of electrolyte, we studied the adsorption behavior of phospholipid vesicles at oil/water interfaces. The effects of concentration of three kinds of electrolyte (NaCl, MgCl₂, LaCl₃) and of the mixing ratio of two kinds of phospholipids (phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylserine), on the adsorption behavior at an oil/water interface were examined. The results were interpreted using the DLVO theory.     

Intermolecular forces in spread phospholipid monolayers at oil/water interfaces

The lateral intermolecular forces between phospholipids are of particular relevance to the behavior of biomembranes, and have been approached via studies of monolayer isotherms at aqueous interfaces, mostly restricted to air/water (A/W) systems. For thermodynamic properties, the oil/water (O/W) interface has major advantages but is experimentally more difficult and less studied. A comprehensive reanalysis of the available thermodynamic data on spread monolayers of phosphatidyl cholines (PC) and phosphatidyl ethanolamines (PE) at O/W interfaces is conducted to identify the secure key features that will underpin further development of molecular models. Relevant recourse is made to isotherms of single-chain molecules and of mixed monolayers to identify the contributions of chain-chain interactions and interionic forces. The emphasis is on the properties of the phase transitions for a range of oil phases. Apparent published discrepancies in thermodynamic properties are resolved and substantial agreement emerges on the main features of these phospholipid monolayer systems. In compression to low areas, the forces between the zwitterions of like phospholipids are repulsive. The molecular model for phospholipid headgroup interactions developed by Stigter et al. accounts well for the virial coefficients in expanded phospholipid O/W monolayers. Inclusion of the changes in configuration and orientation of the zwitterion headgroups on compression, which are indicated by the surface potentials in the phase transition region, and inclusion of the energy of chain demixing from the oil phase will be required for molecular modeling of the phase transitions.     

Computer simulations of catanionic surfactants adsorbed at air/water interfaces

Structural properties pertaining to the solvation of mixtures of dodecytrimethylammonium/dodecylsulfate adsorbed at water/air interfaces were studied using molecular dynamics techniques. Two different surfactant coverages, both in the submonolayer regime, were considered: an infinite-diluted catanionic pair and an equimolar mixture, at a surface concentration of 78.7 A2/headgroup. The most stable solvated structures for the single surfactant pair correspond to contact-head-ion-pairs (CHIP) at a distance close to 5 A. In addition, marginally stable solvent-separated-head-ion-pairs (SSHIP) at distances approximately 7 A were also observed. The mean free energy for the dissociation of CHIP was estimated to be approximately 1 kcal/mol. At finite surfactant concentrations, one observes a considerable degree of clustering between the amphiphiles, due to the strong Coulomb coupling between headgroups. The resulting spatial domains show asymmetric structures with linear dimensions comparable to the simulation box, suggesting the onset of percolative structures. The connectivity pattern of these domains was interpreted in terms of a simplified model consisting of two-dimensional charged Lennard-Jones spheres.     

Computer simulation of polyolefin interfaces

Interfaces, thin films and amorphous cells of several hydrocarbon polymers are studied with atomistic computer simulation. Solubility parameters, surface tensions and interfacial tensions are evaluated from the computed structures. These structures are constructed using Molecular Dynamics and Molecular Mechanics techniques. The various components of the energetic interactions (torsional, vdW, etc.) are examined in detail in order to gain an insight into the nature of the regular and anomalous interactions between these films.The polymers studied in this article are all are atactic linear hydrocarbons and have approximately 200 carbons in the backbone chain. These include polypropylene (PP), head to head polypropylene (hhPP), a polymer which is termed P78 (a random copolymer composed of 22% of a linear (–CH₂CH₂CH₂CH₂–) monomer and 78% of a branched (–CH₂CH(C₂H₅)–) monomer), polyethylenepropylene (PEP), and PE2P2 (an alternating copolymer consisting of two ethylene (E) and two propylene (P) monomers in the repeating pattern (–(EEPP)_n–)). The primary difference between the different polymers studied is the type of side group (ethyl or methyl) and the location, frequency and spacing of that group.Interfaces formed with the same polymer type (PP–PP, PEP–PEP, P78–P78) yield a surface tension close to zero as expected. Attractive interactions between some of the pairs of films is found in the simulation. The distribution among the energetic terms seems to indicate that this attractive interaction is brought about by favorable local intramolecular energetic terms rather than simply by van der Waals interactions alone.     

Dynamic adsorption and characterization of phospholipid and mixed phospholipid/protein layers at liquid/liquid interfaces

Drop profile analysis tensiometry is applied to study the adsorption dynamics of phospholipids, proteins and phospholipid/protein mixtures at liquid/liquid interfaces. Measurements of the dynamic interfacial tension of phospholipid layers give information on the adsorption mechanism and the structure of the adsorption layer. The equilibrium and dynamic adsorption of pure protein solutions, i.e. human serum album (HSA), beta-lactoglobulin (beta-LG), beta-casein (beta-CA), can be explained well by the thermodynamic model of Frumkin and the diffusion-controlled adsorption theory. The adsorption behavior from mixed phospholipid/protein solutions was also investigated in terms of dynamic interfacial tensions. Interestingly, a "skin-like" folded film of pure protein or phospholipid/protein complex layers can be observed at curved surfaces at the water/oil interfaces. The addition of phospholipids accelerates the formation of the folded structure at the drop surface through co-adsorption of proteins.     

Silver nanoplates formed at the air/water and solid/water interfaces

Silver nanoparticles and nanoplates were prepared at the air/AgNO₃ aqueous solution interfaces under poly(9-vinylcarbazole) (PVK) monolayers when illuminated by UV-light at room temperature and elevated temperatures, respectively. When the illuminated films at the air/water interfaces were covered by carbon-coated copper grids, nanoplates were formed even at room temperature, and the size of the nanoplates was much larger than those formed at the air/water interface under the same experimental conditions, indicating that copper took part in the formation of Ag nanoplates through the galvanic displacement reaction between Cu and Ag⁺ ions with the help of carbon layer to conduct electrons. It was found that the basal plane of these nanoplates is the (1 1 1) face of a face-centered cubic (fcc) Ag crystal. Although platelike structure can be formed at the carbon-coated copper grid/AgNO₃ aqueous solution interface without PVK film, it shows different features from those with PVK films, indicating that PVK film plays an important role in the formation of regular large nanoplates. Further observations indicate that special restrained microenvironment, adsorption of PVK molecules on a specific crystal face, anisotropic growth and attachment of the nanoparticles are responsible for the formation of the nanoplates.     

Adsorption of frothers at coal/water interfaces

The adsorption of phenol and three commonly used frothers, namely, terpineol, methylisobutylcarbinol (MIBC) and cresol, on coal surfaces has been studied through UV spectrophotometric and gas chromatographic techniques. The rate of attaining adsorption equilibrium of these alcohols onto coal is very slow, possibly due to pore diffusion. The adsorption isotherms are of typical Langmuir-type except for MIBC, where the adsorption density rises linearly with equilibrium concentration in solution in the range of concentration under study. Free energies of adsorption were calculated from the adsorption isotherms. The results indicate that adsorption occurs through hydrophobic interactions between the frother molecules and the coal surface. The effect of oxidation and pH on adsorption behavior was also studied. Oxidized coal is more hydrophilic and hence the adsorption of these nonionic surface-active agents is reduced after oxidation.     

Computer simulations of catanionic surfactants adsorbed at air/water interfaces. II. Full coverage

We extend our previous molecular dynamics experiments [Rodriguez et al., J. Phys. Chem. B 109, 24427 (2005)] to the analysis of the adsorption of catanionic surfactants at water/air interfaces, at a surfactant coverage close to that of the saturated monolayer: 30.3 A(2) per headgroup. The mixture of surfactants investigated corresponds to equal amounts of dodecytrimethylammonium (DTA) and dodecylsulfate (DS). The structure of the interface is analyzed in terms of the local densities and orientational correlations of all relevant interfacial species. In accordance with experimental evidence, the DTA headgroups penetrate deeper into the aqueous substrate than the DS ones, although the average positions of all headgroups, with respect to the interface, lie in positions somewhat more external than the ones observed at lower coverages. Average tail tilts are close to 45 degrees. The characteristics of the headgroup-water substrate correlations are also analyzed using a tessellation procedure of the interface. The density and polarization responses of the interfacial domains closest to the DS headgroups are enhanced, compared to those adjacent to the DTA detergents. Dynamical aspects related to the diffusion and to the orientational correlations of different water layers in close contact with the surfactant are also investigated.     

Hydrogen-bond-assisted excited-state deactivation at liquid/water interfaces

The excited-state dynamics of eosin B (EB) at dodecane/water and decanol/water interfaces has been investigated with polarization-dependent and time-resolved surface second harmonic generation. The results of the polarization-dependent measurements vary substantially with (1) the EB concentration, (2) the age of the sample, and (3) the nature of the organic phase. All of these effects are ascribed to the formation of EB aggregates at the interface. Aggregation also manifests itself in the time-resolved measurements as a substantial shortening of the excited-state lifetime of EB. However, independently of the dye concentration used, the excited-state lifetime of EB at both dodecane/water and decanol/water interfaces is much longer than in bulk water, where the excited-state population undergoes hydrogen-bond-assisted non-radiative deactivation in a few picoseconds. These results indicate that hydrogen bonding between EB and water molecules at liquid/water interfaces is either much less efficient than in bulk water or does not enhance non-radiative deactivation. This strong increase of the excited-state lifetime of EB at liquid/water interfaces opens promising avenues of applying this molecule as a fluorescent interfacial probe.     

Protein folding at emulsion oil/water interfaces

It has long been known that proteins change their conformation upon adsorption to emulsion oil/water interfaces. However, it is only recently that details of the specifics of these structural changes have emerged. The development of synchrotron radiation circular dichroism (SRCD), combined with advances in FTIR spectroscopy, has allowed the secondary and tertiary structure of proteins adsorbed at emulsion oil/water interfaces to be studied. SRCD in particular has provided quantitative information and has enabled new insights into the mechanisms and forces driving protein structure re-arrangement to be achieved.The extent of conformational re-arrangement of proteins at emulsion interfaces is influenced by several factors including; the inherit flexibility of the protein, the distribution of hydrophobic/hydrophilic domains within the protein sequence and the hydrophobicity of the oil phase. In general, proteins lose much of their tertiary structure upon adsorption to the oil/water interface and have considerable amounts of non-native secondary structure. Two key conformations have been identified in the structure of proteins at interfaces, intermolecular β-sheet and α-helix. The preferred conformation appears to be the α-helix which is the most compact amphipathic conformation at the oil/water interface. The polarity of the oil phase can have a considerable influence on the degree of protein conformational re-arrangement because it acts as a solvent for hydrophobic amino acids. The new conformation of proteins at interfaces also means that proteins undergo less heat induced re-arrangement at interfaces than in solution. Different conformations of proteins at interfaces impact on emulsification capability, emulsion stability and protein/emulsion digestion. Hence advances in the understanding of protein conformation at interfaces can help to identify suitable proteins and conditions for the preparation of emulsion based food products.     

Molecular orientation of monododecyl pentaethylene glycol at water/air and water/oil interfaces. A molecular dynamics computer simulation study

With a molecular dynamics computer simulation we investigated the dynamic properties of a monododecyl pentaethylene glycol (C₁₂E₅) molecule adsorbed at air/water and oil/water interfaces. In these simulations we investigated the molecular orientation of the surfactant molecules in detail. At the air/water interface the maximum of the C₁₂ chain tilt angle distribution measured with respect to the water surface is about 50°. This result is in fairly good agreement with neutron reflection experiments of monododecyl glycol ethers at the air/water interface. At the oil/water interface no significant changes were detected in the molecular orientation. We found that at equilibrium oil molecules penetrate into the hydrophobic monododecyl layer, this was also found by neutron reflection studies of the interactions between C₁₂E₅ and dodecane. The observed oil penetration results in an increase in the surface area per surfactant molecule. Received: 16 July 1999/Accepted in revised form: 28 August 1999     

Structural properties of hydroxyl-substituted alkyl benzenesulfonates at the water/vapor and water/decane interfaces

Molecular dynamics simulations have been performed to investigate the structural properties of hydroxyl-substituted alkyl benzenesulfonate monolayers formed at the water/vapor and water/decane interfaces.We report a detailed study of the interfacial properties—liquid density profile,hydrogen bond structure,surfactant aggregate structure and order parameter—of the novel anionic surfactant,sodium 2-hydroxy-3-decyl-5-octylbenzenesulfonate(C10C8OHphSO3Na).Simulation results show that:with increasing number of s...     

Competitive adsorption of surfactants at air/water interfaces

The zeta potential of an air bubble suspended in an aqueous solution of mixed fluorocarbon and hydrocarbon anionic surfactants is studied over a wide range of concentrations and mixture compositions. The zeta potential is related to surfactant ion adsorption. The two surfactants, which exhibit an antipathy manifested by micellar demixing, compete for surface sites. The total surfactant adsorption is reduced when both surfactants are present. Adsorption phenomena are closely correlated to the micellar phase diagram.     

吸附与润湿I非离子表面活性剂在SiO2/水和SiO2/环己烷界面的吸附层结构

根据Triton X-100在硅胶/水和硅胶/环己烷界面以及Triton x-305在硅胶/水界面的吸附结果,提出了两种简单的吸附模型,在硅胶/环己烷界面上形成的是单分子吸附层,吸附质分子以乙氧基链躺在硅胶表面上而以碳氢链伸入环己烷的方式取向.在硅胶/水界面上形成的是双分子吸附层,第一层中的分子以乙氧基链躺在硅胶表面上而以碳氢链朝外;第二层中的分子取向相反,即以碳氢链朝向第一层分子形成的碳氢链层,而以乙氧基链伸进水中,对石英玻璃-水-环己烷的接触角(θ水)的测定结果表明,θ水随水相中表面活性剂浓度的增加先升后降,进一步支持了上述吸附模型。     

Unusual properties of water at hydrophilic/hydrophobic interfaces

The behaviour of water at mosaic hydrophilic/hydrophobic surfaces of different silicas and in biosystems (biomacromolecules, yeast cells, wheat seeds, bone and muscular tissues) was studied in different dispersion media over wide temperature range using 1H NMR spectroscopy with layer-by-layer freezing-out of bulk water (close to 273 K) and interfacial water (180 < T < 273 K), thermally stimulated depolarization current (TSDC) (90 < T < 270 K), infrared (IR) spectroscopy, and quantum chemical methods. Bulk water and water bound to hydrophilic/hydrophobic interfaces can be assigned to different structural types. There are (i) weakly associated interfacial water (1H NMR chemical shift delta(H) = 1.1-1.7 ppm) that can be assigned to high-density water (HDW) with collapsed structure (CS), representing individual molecules in hydrophobic pockets, small clusters and interstitial water with strongly distorted hydrogen bonds or without them, and (ii) strongly associated interfacial water (delta(H) = 4-5 ppm) with larger clusters, nano- and microdomains, and continuous interfacial layer with both HDW and low-density water (LDW). The molecular mobility of weakly associated bound water is higher (because hydrogen bonds are distorted and weakened and their number is smaller than that for strongly associated water) than that of strongly associated bound water (with strong hydrogen bonds but nevertheless weaker than that in ice Ih) that results in the difference in the temperature dependences of the 1H NMR spectra at T < 273 K. These different waters are also appear in changes in the IR and TSDC spectra.     

The behaviour of dyes at oil/water interfaces

Summary The adsorption of ionic dyes, the builder effect, and the interaction between ionic dyes and surface active agents were investigated by using the electrocapillarity at oil/water interfaces. The oil phase was the solution of tetra-butylammonium chloride, sodium cetylsulphate, cetylpyridinium chloride or stearylamine in methylisobutylketone, and the water phase contained various dyes in addition to the inorganic electrolyte. The interfacial tension decreased over the anodic (or cathodic) polarization range, when anionic (or cationic) dyes were added to the water phase, thus indicating the dye adsorption at the interface. The interfacial excess of dye ions was found to increase linearly with the cubic roots of dye concentration and of ionic strength of the water phase. The counterion binding took place at the oil/water interface between anionic (or cationic) dyes and positive (or negative) head groups of surface active agent ions adsorbed at the interface. It was found that the equilibrium constants of binding between anionic dyes and cationic surface active agents at the oil/water interface were of the same order of magnitude as, and a little larger than, those obtained at the water bulk phase.

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Zusammenfassung An Öl-Wasser-Grenzflächen wurde die Adsorption ionischer Farbstoffe, die Füllerwirkung und die Wechselwirkung zwischen ionischen Farbstoffen und grenzflächenaktiven Verbindungen mit Hilfe der Elektrokapillarität untersucht. Die Ölphase bestand aus einer Lösung von Tetrabutylammoniumchlorid, Natriumcetylsulfat und Cetylpyridiniumchlorid oder Stearylamin in Methylisobutylketon. Die wässerige Phase enthielt verschiedene Farbstoffe und anorganische Elektrolyte. Die Grenzflächenspannung wurde durch anodische (bzw. kathodische) Polarisation erniedrigt, wenn anionischer (bzw. kationischer) Farbstoff zur Wasserphase gegeben wurde. Dies zeigt an, daß Farbstoff an der Grenzfläche adsorbiert wird. Die Grenzflächenkonzentration des Farbstoffions nimmt linear mit der Kubikwurzel der Farbstoffkonzentration und mit der Ionenstärke zu. Als Gegenionen für die anionischen (bzw. kationischen) Farbstoffe an der Grenzfläche wirken die positiven (bzw. negativen) Endgruppen der Tenside, die ebenfalls in der Grenzschicht adsorbiert sind. Die Gleichgewichtskonstanten für die Wechselwirkung zwischen den ionischen Farbstoffen und den grenzflächenaktiven Verbindungen sind an der Öl-Wasser-Grenzfläche von der gleichen Größenordnung bzw. geringfügig größer als in der wässerigen Volumenphase.

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With 12 figures and 2 tables     

Polyelectrolyte/surfactant mixtures in the bulk and at water/oil interfaces

Stabilization of emulsions by mixed polyelectrolyte/surfactant systems is a prominent example for the application in modern technologies. The formation of complexes between the polymers and the surfactants depends on the type of surfactant (ionic, non-ionic) and the mixing ratio. The surface activity (hydrophilic–lipophilic balance) of the resulting complexes is an important quantity for its efficiency in stabilizing emulsions. The interfacial adsorption properties observed at liquid/oil interfaces are more or less equivalent to those observed at the aqueous solution/air interface, however, the corresponding interfacial dilational and shear rheology parameters differ quite significantly. The interfacial properties are directly linked to bulk properties, which support the picture for the complex formation of polyelectrolyte/surfactant mixtures, which is the result of electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions. For long alkyl chain surfactants the interfacial behavior is strongly influenced by hydrophobic interactions while the complex formation with short chain surfactants is mainly governed by electrostatic interactions.     

Interfacial tension studies of crown ethers at air/water and hexane/water interfaces

The adsorption of phase transfer catalysts, 18-crown-6 and dicyclohexano-18-crown-6, at the air/water and the hexane/water interfaces were investigated. Interfacial tension sigma decreased by increasing concentrations of these compounds and therefore both of these crown ethers are accumulated at interfaces. The variation of sigma with concentration for both compounds follows the Szyszkowski equation very well, from which the values of saturated surface densities and interaction parameters have been evaluated. On the basis of occupied surface area of each molecule, the orientation of each of molecules at the air/water and the hexane/water interfaces have been proposed. The present results show that dicyclohexano-18-crown-6 has the higher tendency not only to dissolve into the hexane phase but also to adsorb at the hexane/water interface than 18-crown-6 and that the Starks extraction mechanism was suggested for the present phase transfer catalysis systems.