Equilibrium and dynamic surface tension properties of partially fluorinated quaternary ammonium salt gemini surfactants

The equilibrium and dynamic surface tension properties of a partially fluorinated quaternary ammonium salt gemini surfactant 1,2-bis[dimethyl-(3-perfluoroalkyl-2-hydroxypropyl)ammonium]ethane bromide (C(n)(F)C3-2-C3C(n)F, where n represents fluorocarbon chain lengths of 4, 6, and 8) were investigated, and the effects of the fluorocarbon chain length and the number of chains on them were discussed. The plot of the logarithm of the critical micelle concentration (cmc) against the fluorocarbon chain length for C(n)(F)C3-2-C3C(n)F showed a linear decrease with an increase in chain length. On the basis of the slope of this plot, it was found that the variation in cmc with respect to the chain length is large for fluorinated gemini surfactants. The surface tension at the cmc decreased significantly; this surface tension value is lower than that of conventional fluorinated monomeric surfactants. In particular, the lowest value was 13.7 mN m(-1) for n = 8. Furthermore, it was confirmed that the kinetics of adsorption at the interface decrease with an increase in the fluorocarbon chain length and the concentration.     

1H NMR study on pre-micellization of quaternary ammonium gemini surfactants

Two quaternary ammonium Gemini surfactant series, 12-s-12, ([C(12)H(25)N+ (CH(3))(2)](2)(CH(2))(s).(2)Br(-)) and 14-s-14 ([C(14)H(29)N(+)(CH(3))(2)](2)(CH(2))(s).(2)Br(-)), where s = 2, 3, and 4, have been studied by the use of (1)H NMR in aqueous solution at concentrations below their critical micelle concentrations (CMC) at 25 degrees C. The appearance of a second set of peaks for the 14-s-14 series and the changes in chemical shifts, line widths, and line shapes of the 12-s-12 series with increasing concentration below the CMC are interpreted as evidence for the formation of premicelle aggregates (oligomers) that appear at approximately one-half their CMC values. Self-diffusion coefficients (D) and transverse relaxation times (T(2)) have also been detected and support the results obtained by (1)H NMR.     

Surface properties and aggregate morphology of partially fluorinated carboxylate-type anionic gemini surfactants

Three anionic homologues of a novel partially fluorinated carboxylate-type anionic gemini surfactant, N,N′-di(3-perfluoroalkyl-2-hydroxypropyl)-N,N′-diacetic acid ethylenediamine (2 edda, where n represents the number of carbon atoms in the fluorocarbon chain (4, 6, and 8)) were synthesized. In these present gemini surfactants, the relatively small carboxylic acid moieties form hydrophilic head groups. The surface properties or structures of the aggregates of these surfactants are strongly influenced by the nonflexible fluorocarbons and small head groups; this is because these surfactants have a closely packed molecular structure. The equilibrium surface tension properties of these surfactants were measured at 298.2 K for various fluorocarbon chain lengths. The plot of the logarithm of the critical micelle concentration (cmc) against the fluorocarbon chain lengths for 2 edda (n = 4, 6, and 8) showed a minimum for n = 6. Furthermore, the lowest surface tension of 2 edda at the cmc was 16.4 mN m⁻¹. Such unique behavior has not been observed even in the other fluorinated surfactants. Changes in the shapes and sizes of these surfactant aggregate with concentration were investigated by dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The TEM micrographs showed that in an aqueous alkali solution, 2 edda mainly formed aggregates with stringlike (n = 4), cagelike (n = 6), and distorted bilayer structures (n = 8). The morphological changes in the aggregates were affected by the molecular structure composed of nonflexible fluorocarbon chains and flexible hydrocarbon chains.     

The unusual micelle micropolarity of partially fluorinated gemini surfactants sensed by pyrene fluorescence

New gemini surfactants having two fluorocarbon chains were prepared by refluxing partially fluorinated alkyl bromide with N,N,N',N'-tetramethyl-1,6-diaminohexane in acetonitrile. The partially fluorinated gemini surfactants containing a six-methylene spacer chain are easily soluble in water. The critical micelle concentrations (cmc's) were determined by various fluorescent probe methods. The hydrophobicity of a CF2 group was estimated to be 1.5 times that of a CH2 group according to the cmc values. The micelle micropolarity of a fluorocarbon gemini sensed by pyrene fluorescence was unusually high, suggesting an apparent iceberg-like environment in the location of pyrene. The significantly small micelle aggregation numbers of fluorinated gemini surfactants were ascertained by the pyrene fluorescence quenching method. The micelle ionization degree estimated by fluorescence quenching of 6-methoxy-N-(3-sulfopropyl)quinolinium (SPQ) gave tendencies similar to those of the corresponding hydrocarbon geminis.     

Thermodynamics of micellization for partially fluorinated cationic gemini surfactants and related single-chain surfactants in aqueous solution

A series of partially fluorinated cationic gemini surfactants and their corresponding monomeric surfactants have been studied by isothermal titration microcalorimetry. The critical micelle concentration (CMC) and enthalpy of micellization (DeltaH(mic)) were obtained from calorimetric curves. The CMCs of the gemini surfactants are much lower than those of the corresponding monomeric surfactants and decrease with an increase in the number of fluorine atoms on the hydrophobic chain. The micellization of partially fluorinated cationic gemini surfactants is much more exothermic than that of the corresponding monomeric surfactants. Because of the incompatibility of hydrocarbon spacer and partially fluorinated chain, DeltaH(mic) values of the surfactants with a C6 spacer are more negative than those of the surfactants with a C12 spacer. The variations in the architecture of the fluorocarbon chain segments may be the reason of the irregularities in the change of DeltaH(mic) for the gemini surfactants. Moreover, the contribution of the enthalpy generally increases with an increase in the number of fluorine atoms.     

Aggregation properties of cationic gemini surfactants with partially fluorinated spacers in aqueous solution

The aggregation properties of cationic gemini surfactants alkanediyl-alpha,omega-bis(dodecyldimethylammonium bromide), [C(12)H(25)(CH(3))(2)N(CH(2))(m)(CF(2))(n)(CH(2))(m))N(CH(3))(2)C(12)H(25)]Br(2) [where 2m + n = 12 and n = 0, 4, and 6; designated as 12-12-12, 12-12(C(4)(F))-12, and 12-12(C(6)(F))-12, respectively] have been studied by microcalorimetry, time-resolved fluorescence quenching, and electrical conductivity. Compared with a fully hydrocarbon spacer of 12-12-12, the fluorinated spacer with a lower ratio of CF(2) to CH(2) in 12-12(C(4)(F))-12 tends to disfavor the aggregation, leading to larger critical micelle concentration (cmc), lower micelle aggregation number (N), and less negative Gibbs free energy of micellization (DeltaG(mic)). However, the fluorinated spacer with a higher ratio of CF(2) to CH(2) in 12-12(C(6)(F))-12 may prompt the aggregation, resulting in lower cmc, higher N, and more negative DeltaG(mic). It is also noted that enthalpy change of micellization (DeltaH(mic)) for 12-12(C(4)(F))-12 is the most exothermic, but the values of DeltaH(mic) for 12-12-12 and 12-12(C(6)(F))-12 are almost the same. These results are rationalized in terms of competition among the enhanced hydrophobicity and the rigidity of the fluorinated spacer, and the variation of immiscibility of the fluorinated spacer with the hydrocarbon side chains.     

Interactions of quaternary ammonium salt-type gemini surfactants with sodium poly(styrene sulfonate)

The interactions of cationic gemini surfactants, 1,2-bis(alkyldimethylammonio)ethane dibromide (m-2-m: m is hydrocarbon chain length, m = 10 and 12), and an anionic polymer, sodium poly(styrene sulfonate) (PSS), have been characterized by several techniques such as tensiometry, fluorescence spectroscopy, and dynamic light scattering. The surface tension of gemini surfactant/PSS mixed systems decreases with surfactant concentration, reaching break points, which are taken as critical aggregation concentrations (cac). The surface tension at the cac of mixtures is higher than that of single surfactants, and it is found that at concentrations above the cac, the surfactant molecules are associated with the polymer in the bulk. The 12-2-12/PSS mixed system shows higher surface activity than both 10-2-10/PSS and the monomeric surfactant of dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide/PSS systems. Fluorescence measurements of these mixed systems suggest the formation of a complex with a highly hydrophobic environment in the bulk of the solution. Additionally, dynamic light scattering measurements show that the hydrodynamic diameter of the 12-2-12/PSS mixed system is smaller than that of PSS only at low concentration, indicating interactions between surfactant and polymer. These result from the electrostatic attraction between ammonium and sulfate headgroups as well as the hydrophobic interaction between their hydrocarbon chains.     

Effect of double quaternary ammonium groups on micelle formation of partially fluorinated surfactant

Water-in-oil microemulsions (w/o μEs) stabilized by the cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTACl) have been used as reaction media to generate Au nanoparticles (Au-NPs). In addition the pure μEs have been used as media to disperse Au and Pd-NPs, which have been pre-synthesised in aqueous phases and stabilized by sodium 2-mercaptoethanesulfonate (MES) ligands, and also commercially available SiO(2)-NPs. A general method for recovery and separation of the nanoparticles from these mixed NP-μE systems has been demonstrated by tuning phase behavior of the background microemulsions. Addition of appropriate aliquots of water drives a clean liquid-liquid phase transition, resulting in two macroscopic layers, the NPs preferentially partition into an upper oil-rich phase and are separated from excess surfactant which resides in a lower aqueous portion. UV-vis and (1)H NMR spectroscopy have been used to follow these separation processes and quantify the recovery and recycle efficiencies for the different NPs. For example, ～90% of the microemulsion-prepared Au-NPs can be recovered; with even greater separation efficiencies attainable for pre-synthesised MES-stabilized Au-MES-NPs (～98%) and Pd-MES-NPs (92%). For the silica NP-μE dispersions gravimetry indicates ～84% recovery of the NPs. TEM images of all systems showed that NP shapes and size distributions were generally preserved after these phase transfer processes. This low-energy and cost-effective purification route appears to be a quite general approach for processing different inorganic NPs, having advantages of being isothermal, using only commercially available inexpensive components and requiring no additional organic solvents.     

Adsorption of gemini surfactants with partially fluorinated chains at three different surfaces: neutron reflectometry results

The adsorption of six symmetrical cationic (dimethylammonium bromide) gemini surfactants with four different partially fluorinated chains at three different surfaces--the air/water, the hydrophilic silica/water, and the hydrophobic (octadecyltricholorosilane (OTS))/water--has been investigated by neutron reflectometry. The corresponding single chain trimethylammonium bromides have also been studied at the two solid surfaces. Four of the geminis with a C(6) spacer and chains with differing amounts of fluorocarbon have identical limiting areas per molecule at the air/water interface (106 ± 5 ?(2)). This is similar to the value for the corresponding hydrocarbon gemini with a C(6) spacer and C(12) side chains, but unlike the hydrocarbon gemini, it is significantly more than twice the area per molecule of the corresponding single chain cationic. In adsorbed aggregates on hydrophilic silica the area per molecule decreases from the air/water value by an average of about 25%, indicating a substantial improvement in the packing of these geminis in the aggregate, which can be attributed to the stronger interaction between the hydrophobic chains in the interior of the aggregates. On the hydrophobic OTS surface the area per molecule in the adsorbed monolayer for three partially fluorinated geminis decreased by about 15% from the air/water value, again indicating much more favorable packing next to the hydrophobic OTS, but for one of the geminis, fC(8)C(6)-C(6)-C(6)fC(8), the change in area was reversed. This reversal is accompanied by a marked thinning of the layer, which is attributed to a shift in the balance between the interactions of the hydrocarbon spacer and fluorocarbon chain fragments and the OTS surface.     

Quaternary ammonium salt gemini surfactants containing perfluoroalkyl tails catalyzed one-pot Mannich reactions in aqueous media

A newly prepared quaternary ammonium salt (QAS) gemini fluorosurfactants efficiently catalyze one-pot Mannich reactions of aldehydes, amines and ketones in aqueous media at ambient temperature to afford corresponding β-aminocarbonyl compounds in good to excellent yields. In addition, the gemini fluorosurfactant catalysts were recovered and reused for three times with little loss of their catalytic activities.     

Aggregation behavior of nitrophenoxy-tailed quaternary ammonium surfactants

Cationic surfactants N,N,N-trimethyl-10-(4-nitrophenoxy)decylammonium bromide (N10TAB) and N,N,N',N'-tetramethyl-N,N'-bis[10-(4-nitrophenoxy)decyl]-1,6-hexanediammonium dibromide (N10-6-10N), bearing aromatic nitrophenoxy groups in the ends of their hydrophobic chains, have been synthesized, and their self-assembling properties in aqueous solutions have been studied by conductivity, isothermal titration microcalorimetry, 1H NMR spectroscopy, and dynamic light scattering. Below the critical micelle concentration, N10-6-10N can form premicelles with 2 or 3 surfactant molecules. Beyond the critical micelle concentration, the two surfactants have strong self-aggregation ability and can form micelles of rather small size and with small aggregation numbers N, which are 30 +/- 3 for N10TAB and 20 +/- 2 for N10-6-10N, respectively. Also, the variations in 1H NMR signals at different surfactant concentrations provide the information on the environmental change of the surfactants upon their micellization progress. The most prominent phenomenon is the shielding effect of the aromatic groups over the protons in the aliphatic chains, implying that the nitrophenoxy groups partially insert into the micelles and face the several middle methylenes of the hydrophobic side chains.     

Synthesis of novel quaternary ammonium surfactants containing adamantane

A series of novel quaternary ammonium surfactants containing adamantane were designed and synthesized from 1-adamantanecarboxylic acid.The structures of target surfactants were confirmed by]H NMR,elements analysis and FTIR.Surface properties of these surfactants were investigated.Due to the lipophilicity of adamantane,the critical micelle concentration（CMC） and C₂₀ values of the synthesized quaternary ammonium surfactants are lower than that of conventional quaternary ammonium surfactants.     

Physicochemical properties of quaternary ammonium bromide-type trimeric surfactants

Trimeric surfactants of quaternary ammonium bromide (m-2-m-2-m, where m is the hydrocarbon chain length of 8, 10, or 12) with three hydrocarbon chains and three hydrophilic groups connected by two ethylene spacer chains were synthesized by the reaction of N,N,N',N",N"-pentamethyldiethylenetriamine and the corresponding alkyl bromide. Their physicochemical properties were characterized by surface tension, static and dynamic light-scattering, and fluorescence spectrum of pyrene techniques. The critical micelle concentrations (cmc's) of m-2-m-2-m shifted to lower concentrations with increasing hydrocarbon chain length, and their values were smaller by about one to three orders of magnitude than those of the corresponding dimeric (m-2-m) and monomeric surfactants (C(m)TAB) with the same hydrocarbon chain length. Of these surfactants, 10-2-10-2-10 showed the greatest efficiency in lowering the surface tension and provided the smallest occupied area per molecule, indicating that it adsorbs more compactly at the air/water interface. In addition, from the static and dynamic light-scattering measurements, the aggregation numbers of the trimeric surfactants at the cmc were very small, and two hydrodynamic diameters above the cmc were observed.     

Mixing behavior of fluorinated and hydrogenated gemini surfactants at the air-water interface

Mixing behavior of hydrogenated and fluorinated cationic gemini surfactants was studied at the air-water interface by Brewster angle microscopy and pi-A isotherm curves. In the bulk, these two molecules did not mix and showed phase separation. At the air-water interface, if a monolayer was formed by separate deposition of the two solutions, they formed separate domains, and the compression occurred in two steps: first the domains with hydrogenated gemini surfactant were compressed until they showed collapse; then the domains with fluorinated gemini surfactant were compressed. If the two solutions were mixed before the deposition, they remained mixed upon compression; on the other hand, separate domains under separate deposition were shown to mix if the subphase was heated.     

Adsorption and aggregation properties of heterogemini surfactants containing a quaternary ammonium salt and a sugar moiety

A novel heterogemini surfactant comprising two hydrocarbon chains and two different hydrophilic groups such as a quaternary ammonium cation and gluconamide nonion N,N-dimethyl-N-[2-(N'-alkyl-N'-gluconamide)ethyl]-1-alkylammonium bromides (2CnAmGlu, where n represents hydrocarbon chain lengths of 8, 10, 12, and 14) was synthesized by reacting N,N-dimethylethylenediamine with alkyl bromide, followed by a reaction with 1,5-D(+)-gluconolactone. The adsorption properties of 2CnAmGlu were characterized by surface tension measurements made using the Wilhelmy plate method, and their aggregation properties were investigated by dynamic light scattering and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy techniques. The relationship between the hydrocarbon chain length and the logarithm of the critical micelle concentration (cmc) for 2CnAmGlu exhibited a linear decrease when the chain length was increased up to 12 and then a departure from linearity at n=14. The surface tension reached 24-26 mN m-1 at each cmc, indicating high efficiency in lowering the surface tension of water. Furthermore, it was found that the structure of the aggregate formed for 2CnAmGlu in solution was influenced by the hydrocarbon chain length; that is, for n=10 and 12, micelles with a hydrodynamic radius of 2-5 nm were formed, whereas vesicles were also observed for n=14.     

Study of the formation of dye-induced premicellar aggregates and its application to the determination of quaternary ammonium surfactants

Formation of dye-induced mixed premicellar aggregates from binary surfactant solutions is proposed for the determination of alkyltrimethylammonium surfactants at the muM level. The Coomassie Brilliant Blue G (CBBG) dye, negatively charged, induces the formation of cationic surfactant aggregates at concentrations far below the cmc. The role of CBBG in the formation of premicelles was studied by using pyrene as a fluorimetric probe. Formation of CBBG-cationic surfactant aggregates of well-defined stoichiometries that depend on the total surfactant concentration added is demonstrated. Also, the influence of analytical parameters affecting the concentration at which a given aggregate is formed was studied. Linear calibrations for alkyltrimethylammonium surfactants were obtained by using different cationic surfactants as titrants; therefore, the previously derived measurement parameter for mixed micelles is applicable to premicellar aggregates as well.     

Mesoporous soft solid electrolyte-based quaternary ammonium salt

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - A novel mesoporous soft solid electrolyte was successfully prepared from tetrabutylammonium hexafluorophosphate, propylene carbonate, and...     

Role of the spacer stereochemistry on the structure of solid-supported gemini surfactants aggregates

Energy dispersive X-ray diffraction was applied to investigate the role of the spacer stereochemistry on the structure of the solid supported aggregates of three stereoisomeric cationic gemini surfactants, 2,3-dimethoxy-1,4-bis-(N-hexadecyl-N,N-dimethylammonio)butane dibromide. Solid-supported Gemini surfactant aggregates self-assemble into highly interdigitated multibilayer stacks. Structural properties, such as the bilayer thickness, the headgroup size, the thickness of the hydrophobic core, and the size of the interbilayer water region, were derived from electron density profiles. Results show that the stereochemistry of the spacer controls the structural properties of the solid-supported interfacial aggregates.