• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.10 no.6
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• pp.876-880
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• 1999

The surfactant self-diffusion coefficients of mixed micellar solutions of ionic and nonionic surfactants have been measured by the NMR pulsed field gradient spin echo(FT-PGSE) method. In addition, the line widths of $^1H$ NMR signal have been monitored. The system investgated are $C_{12}EO_5/SDS/D_2O$, $C_{12}EO_5/DTAC/D_2O$, and $C_{12}EO_8/SDS/D_2O$. In the sample series, the molar ratios of $D_2O$ to surfactant(ionic+nonionic) were kept constant while the surfactant mixing ratio was varied. For the $C_{12}EO_5$ system, the surfactant self-diffusion coefficient indicates minimum when the surfactant mixing ratio is about 20% ionic surfactant. The observed decrease in self-diffusion coefficients as nonionic surfactant was replaced by ionic surfactant is interpreted to mainly be due to an increased micelle-micelle repulsion. The increase in self-diffusion coefficients occurring at higher fraction of ionic surfactant is shown to be due to a decrease in micelle size. For the $C_{12}EO_8$ system, the effect of the surfactant mixing ratio is much weaker which can be understood by considering the molecular geometry and large headgroup area. The proton NMR line widths correlate well with the self-diffusion coefficients and broadening of the alkyl chain methylene signals is found when the self-diffusion coefficients is low.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.822-828
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• 1998

Binary system of water and polyoxyethylene dodecyl ether, $C_{12}H_{25}(OCH_2CH_2)nOH$, have been studied by $^1H$ NMR techniques. For n=5($C_{12}EO_5$) and n=8($C_{12}EO_8$), the self-diffusion coefficients of nonionic surfactants in the isotropic phase($L_1$) have been measured by using pulsed field gradient technique for a range of temperature and concentrations. In addition the line widths of the different proton signals have been monitored, and samples of some liquid crystalline characteristic were also studied. Dramatic Broadening of the methylene signals of the alkyl($C_{12}H_{25}$) chain is observed as the hexagonal liquid crystalline phase is approached in the $C_{12}EO_5-$water system, while only small broadening is observed in the $C_{12}EO_8-$water system. It was shown that there was a growth of $C_{12}EO_5$ micelles to rods with increasing concentrations, while the $C_{12}EO_8-$ micelles at low temperature remain small in the concentration range. The self-diffusion coefficients of the surfactants decrease rapidly with increasing concentration until a minimum is reached after which there is slow increase. The location of the minimum point occurs at lower concentrations the temperature is close to the cloud point, where the system separate into two isotropic phase. In the line width studies, broadening is found at a certain temperature interval when the concentration is increased in the $C_{12}EO_5$ system. The results indicate that the surfactant aggregates grow in size at the cloud point is approached. The aggregates seem to be flexible and probably not to be of a definite shape close to the cloud point. In the $C_{12}EO_8$ system, the micelles are much less affected by an increase in temperature and micellar growth can't be unambiguously established. The methylene signals of the ethylene oxide moieties consistantly show narrower $^1H$ signals, showing that in the aggregates they are less ordered than the chain methylenes. The various changes in aggregate size and shape are correlated with the stability ranges of the isotropic and liquid crystalline phases according to phase diagrams from the literature. Both aggregate size and phase structure are in qualitative agreement with concentration based on the effective shape of the molecules at different temperature and concentration.