Aggregation of surfactants in non-polar solvents
This aim of this project is to use D16 SANS to determine the structure of inverse micelles of counterion exchanged sodium dioctylsulfosuccinate surfactants (MAOT) near their critical micelle concentration (CMC). It is an unresolved question whether this property exists for nonpolar solvents, although different experiments have attempted to measure it. The understanding of the formation of inverse micelles is important for understanding charging in nonpolar solvents, as surfactant aggregates are thought to stabilize the ions formed. SANS measurements indicate that there may be a concentration below which NaAOT does not form inverse micelles in cyclohexane, and SAXS measurements will be performed with MAOT surfactants to detect low concentration aggregates with these surfactants. However, x-ray contrast only enables the counterion core structure to be observed. The proposed SANS experiments will enable the structure of the whole inverse micelle (H-surfactant in D-cyclohexane) and the hydrated core (D2O-hydrated H-surfactant in H-cyclohexane) to be determined, which will provide a comprehensive view of the inverse micelles and insight into the nature of the CMC in nonpolar solvents.
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EASTOE Julian; ALEXANDER Shirin; GRILLO Isabelle; JAMES Craig; NAVARRO Miguel; RACYS Daugirdas; Gregory N. Smith and YAN Ci. (2013). Aggregation of surfactants in non-polar solvents. Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL) doi:10.5291/ILL-DATA.9-10-1328
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