Critical evaluation of models for self-assembly of short and medium chain-length surfactants in aqueous solutions

During numerous visits to our Laboratory professor Johannes (Hans) Lyklema emphasized the importance of a holistic view on thermodynamics. In order to fulfill this aim he assembled the monumental Fundamentals of Interface and Colloid Science series. The basic state functions (internal energy, enthalpy and free energies) are interrelated by Gibbs and Helmholtz relationships. First-order phase transitions are characterized by first-order state variables (temperature, pressure, entropy, volume). Interactions are, however best expressed by second-order partial derivatives (compressibility, heat capacity and expansivity). They are related to the first-order state variables by relaxation contributions quantifying the degree of cooperativity of self-assembly processes leading to phase separation. In particular they exhibit the limit when phase transitions are changed to second-order processes. This was the focus of my first review dedicated to the memory of professor Lyklema, "Characterization of van der Waals type bimodal,- lambda,- meta- and spinodal phase transitions in liquid mixtures, solid suspensions and thin films" (ACIS 253 (2018) 66). In the present review the attention is placed on short and medium chain-length surfactant self-assembly in aqueous solutions without additives (salts or solubilizates). The dependence of state functions described above on concentration, temperature and pressure is compared to corresponding dynamic molecular processes occurring on different time, frequency and length scales including structure analysis. It is convincingly shown that Hartley-Tanford space filled spherical anhydrous micelle core - polar shell model designed for long chain-length surfactants (cmc < 0.01 mol/dm³, N > 50) cannot be enforced on short and medium chain-length surfactant non-sperical micelles (cmc close to unity, N < 20). Moreover, it is shown that a proper validity evaluation of proposed models for micelle formation is seriously undermined by their application to only a narrow concentration range near critical micelle concentration (cmc). When successful each model should characterize all self-assembly processes occurring (also at limiting association concentration, lac, at second critical concentration, 2cc and at third critical concen-tration, 3cc) within the entire concentration range of thermodynamically stable surfactant solutions. All other self-assembly processes except micelle formation are rarely considered. The pre-micelle formation at lac is, for example omitted as deviations from presented models. The reviewed reports are therefore selected on the basis of maximum investigated concentration range and of largest possible number of homologues.

Hydrostatic pressure reveals bilayer phase behavior of dioctadecyldimethylammonium bromide and chloride

Bilayer phase transitions of dioctadecyldimethylammonium bromide (2C(18)Br) and chloride (2C(18)Cl) were observed by differential scanning calorimetry and high-pressure light-transmittance measurements. The 2C(18)Br bilayer membrane showed different kinds of transitions depending on preparation methods of samples under atmospheric pressure. Under certain conditions, the 2C(18)Br bilayer underwent three kinds of transitions, the metastable transition from the metastable lamellar crystal (L(c(2))) phase to the metastable lamellar gel (L(β)) phase at 35.4 °C, the metastable main transition from the metastable L(β) phase to the metastable liquid crystalline (L(α)) phase at 44.5 °C, and the stable transition from the stable lamellar crystal (L(c(1))) phase to the stable L(α) phase at 52.8 °C. On the contrary, the 2C(18)Cl bilayer underwent two kinds of transitions, the stable transition from the stable L(c) phase to the stable L(β) phase at 19.7 °C and the stable main transition from the stable L(β) phase to the stable L(α) phase at 39.9 °C. The temperatures of the phase transitions of the 2C(18)Br and 2C(18)Cl bilayers were almost linearly elevated by applying pressure. It was found from the temperature (T)-pressure (p) phase diagram of the 2C(18)Br bilayer that the T-p curves for the main transition and the L(c(1))/L(α) transition intersect at ca. 130 MPa because of the larger slope of the former transition curve. On the other hand, the T-p phase diagram of the 2C(18)Cl bilayer took a simple shape. The thermodynamic properties for the main transition of the 2C(18)Br and 2C(18)Cl bilayers were comparable to each other, whereas those for the L(c(1))/L(α) transition of the 2C(18)Br bilayer showed considerably high values, signifying that the L(c(1)) phase of the 2C(18)Br bilayer is extremely stable. These differences observed in both bilayers are attributable to the difference in interaction between a surfactant and its counterion.