Short-Chain Analogues of Surfactants and Other Nonmicelle-Forming Amphiphiles

10 Short-Chain Analogues of Surfactants and Other Nonmicelle-Forming Amphiphiles 

The term micelle, as normally understood and as used in this work, refers to a large aggregate formed in a strongly cooperative association of amphiphilic compounds. 

A consequence of the cooperativity is that, as schematized in Fig. 2.23, the size distribution curve has a deep minimum the appearance of a pronounced minimum in the size distribution curve is a good criterion for the formation of proper micelles. However, aggregation of amphiphilic compounds is of course not restricted to micelle formation and as indicated in Fig. 2.23 different types of size distribution curves 

The distinction between micellar and nonmicellar association may not always be immediately clear from experimental variable concentration data, but Muker-jee6,23,24 has in instructive papers presented methods to distinguish between proper micelle fromation and other types of stepwise association. As he demonstrates, erroneous conclusions may easily be drawn and are abundant in the literature. 

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