Effect of ethanol on the interaction between poly(vinylpyrrolidone) and sodium dodecyl sulfate

The effect of ethanol on the interaction between the anionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and the nonionic polymer poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) has been investigated using a range of techniques including surface tension, fluorescence, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), and viscosity. Surface tension and fluorescence studies show that the critical micelle concentration (cmc) of the surfactant decreases to a minimum value around 15 wt % ethanol; that is, it follows the cosurfactant effect. However, in the presence of PVP, the onset of the interaction, denoted cmc(1), between the surfactant and the polymer is considerably less dependent on ethanol concentration. The saturation point, cmc(2), however, reflects the behavior of the cmc in that it decreases upon addition of ethanol. This results in a decrease in the amount of surfactant bound to the polymer [C(bound) = cmc(2) - cmc] at saturation. The viscosity of simple PVP solutions depends on ethanol concentration, but since SANS studies show that ethanol has no effect on the polymer conformation, the changes observed in the viscosity reflect the viscosity of the background solvent. There are significant increases in bulk viscosity when the surfactant is added, and these have been correlated with the polymer conformation extracted from an analysis of the SANS data and with the amount of polymer adsorbed at the micelle surface. Competition between ethanol and PVP to occupy the surfactant headgroup region exists; at low ethanol concentration, the PVP displaces the ethanol and the PVP/SDS complex resembles that formed in the absence of the ethanol. At higher ethanol contents, the polymer does not bind to the ethanol-rich micelle surface.