Organized assemblies formed from organic surfactant

Figure 1. Various organized assemblies formed from a simple surfactant molecule in mixtures of...

A brief description of the structural features and relevant properties of different organized assemblies formed from surfactant molecules is presented. Next, the use and application of these organized surfactant systems in separation science is surveyed. Several possible new areas for future developments employing these ordered media are mentioned. 

One of the first examples of mesoscopic-macroscopic two-dimensional ordering within a structure involved a bacterial superstructure formed from the co-aligned multicellular filaments of Bacillus subtilis that was used to template macroporous fibers of either amorphous or ordered mesoporous silica [82], The interfilament space was mineralized with mesoporous silica and, following removal of the organic, a macroporous framework with 0.5 pm wide channels remained. Mesoporous silica channel walls in this hierarchical structure were curved and approximately 100 nm in thickness. Dense, amorphous walls were obtained by replacing the surfactant-silicate synthesis mixture with a silica sol solution. The difference in the mode of formation between porous and non-porous wall structures was explained in terms of assembly from close-packed mesoporous silica coated bacterial filaments in the former compared to consolidation of silica nanoparticles within interfilament voids in the latter. 

This very simplified model of micellization is illustrated in scheme 4 for a cationic surfactant. At concentrations below the cmc only monomeric surfactant is present, but at higher concentration the solution contains micelle, free surfactant and counterions which escape from the micelle. It is assumed that submicellar aggregates are relatively unimportant for normal micelles in water, although, as we shall see, this assumption fails in some systems. However it is probably reasonable for relatively dilute surfactant, although at high surfactant concentration, and especially in the presence of added salt, the micelle may grow, and eventually, new organized assemblies form, for example, liquid crystals are often detected in relatively concentrated surfactant [1]. However, this discussion will focus on the relatively dUute surfactant solutions in which normal micelles are present. 

The understanding of the relationships between molecular structure of tailored organic molecules, their hierarchical organization in assemblies chemically bound to surfaces and interfaces as well as their fimctionality represent fundamental topics of current interest [104,105]. hi the following we shall focus on so-called chemisorbed, self-assembled monolayers (SAM), which are distinctly different from the physisorbed, hydrogen-bonded adlayers discussed in the previous paragraph. Following a historical development we will use the terminus self-assembled monolayers herein exclusively as molecular assemblies formed by chemisorption of an active surfactant onto a solid surface [106-108]. We will specifically focus on selected results with aromatic SAMs on Au(lll) electrodes at solid-liquid interfaces. 

Amphiphilic molecules, when dissolved in organic solvents, are capable of self-assembly to form reversed micelles. The reversed micelles are structurally the reverse of normal micelles in that they have an external shell made up of the hydrocarbon chains of the amphiphilic molecules and the hydrophilic head-groups localized in the interior of the aggregate. Water molecules are readily solubilized in this polar core, forming a so-called water pool. This means that reversed micelles form microcompartments on a nanometer scale. The reversed micelles can host all kinds of substrate molecules whether hydrophilic, hydrophobic, or amphiphilic due to the dynamic structure of the water pool and the interface formed by the surfactant layer, in contrast with a liposome system. The properties of water molecules localized in the interior of reversed micelles are physicochemically different from those of bulk water, the difference becoming progressively smaller as the water content in the micellar system increases [1,2]. The anomalous water at low JVo =[water]/[surfactant] obviously influences the chemical behavior of host molecules in the water pools. 

Functionalized polyelectrolytes are promising candidates for photoinduced ET reaction systems. In recent years, much attention has been focused on modifying the photophysical and photochemical processes by use of polyelectrolyte systems, because dramatic effects are often brought about by the interfacial electrostatic potential and/or the existence of microphase structures in such systems [10, 11], A characteristic feature of polymers as reaction media, in general, lies in the potential that they make a wider variety of molecular designs possible than the conventional organized molecular assemblies such as surfactant micelles and vesicles. From a practical point of view, polymer systems have a potential advantage in that polymers per se can form film and may be assembled into a variety of devices and systems with ease. 

Self-assembled monolayers are formed spontaneously by the immersion of an appropriate substrate into a solution of active surfactant in an organic solvent. After the substrate is immersed for a time from minutes to hours, it is rinsed with ligroin, methanol, distilled water, and dried in a steam of nitrogen. An apparent effect of the monolayer coating is the drastic change in wettability of the surface so that the measurement of the contact angle can be considered as an effective way to detect the formation of the SAMs. 

Figure 2.2 The spontaneous self-aggregation of membranogenic surfactants into a vesicle, with an interior water pool that can host water-soluble molecules. If this self-aggregation takes place also in the presence of hydrophobic molecules, and/or ionic molecules, these can organize themselves into the bilayer or on the surface of the vesicle. A realistic scenario of the emergence of life can be based on a gradual transition from random mixtures of simple organic molecules to spatially ordered assemblies, displaying primitive forms of cellular compartmentation, selfreproduction, and catalysis.

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