Simple model for ternary mixtures with nonionic surfactants

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Abstract
A simple three-component lattice model employed previously to describe ternary mixtures with ionic surfactants is extended in order to describe mixtures with nonionic surfactants. This entails replacing the orientation-dependent hydrogen-bonding interaction between water and surfactant with an effective interaction which is isotropic but temperature dependent. We obtain the progression from two-phase to three-phase to two-phase coexistence with temperature which is typical of these systems. The behavior of characteristic temperatures with varying system parameters, such as the alkane number, is qualitatively reproduced.