Abstract
Noncovalent interactions determine the structure-property relationship of materials. Self-assembly originating from weak noncovalent interactions represents a broad variety of solution-based transformations spanning micellization and crystallization, which, nevertheless, conforms to neither colloid nor solution sciences. Here, we investigate the weak self-assembly in water-amphiphile-oil solutions to understand the connection between the amphiphilic molecular structure and water solubilization in oil. X-ray and neutron scattering, converged with large-scale atomistic molecular dynamics simulations, support the fact that the amphiphiles assemble into liquid worm-like micelles and loose inverted proto-micelles. The inverted proto-micelles are energetically ready to accommodate a higher amount of water. These structures arise from a balance of intermolecular interactions controlled by the amphiphile tail-group structures. Thus, by linking the aggregate morphology to the molecular structure, this work provides insights on the molecular design for control of water solubility and dispersion in oil.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 12908-12915 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics |
| Volume | 20 |
| Issue number | 18 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2018 |
Funding
The authors thank Prof. Monica Olvera de la Cruz for valuable suggestions. This work is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Division of Chemical Sciences, Biosciences and Geosciences, under contract numbers DE-AC02-05CH11231. A portion of this research was conducted using the CG2 General-Purpose SANS at the High Flux Isotope Reactor, a DOE Office of Science User Facility operated by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. We thank the support by the U.S. DOE, Office of Science, BES, Division of Chemical Sciences, Biosciences, and Geosciences under contract DE-AC02-06CH11357.