Effect of Structural Variations of Non-ionic Surfactants on Micellar Properties and Solubilization: Surfactants with Semi-polar Hydrophobes

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Abstract
Novel non-ionic surfactants have been synthesized in which a polar group (either an ether or a keto group) has been introduced into the hydrocarbon chain of an octadecylpolyoxyethylene glycol monoether (C15En) with an oxyethylene chain length, n, of 17–18 units. Light scattering studies have indicated aggregation numbers for these semi-polar surfactants in aqueous solution of between 55–65% of that of an unsubstituted octadecylpolyoxyethylene glycol monoether, C18E22. The solubilizing capacities of the semi-polar surfactant micelles for test compounds which were mainly solubilized at the polyoxyethylene/core interface were lower than those of C18E22 whilst solubilizates which exhibited a reasonable degree of solubility in both the interface and the micellar core showed an increased solubilization.