Two-phase structure of polyelectrolyte gel/surfactant complexes
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Updated: Jul 15, 2026

Assembly and Characterization of Polyelectrolyte Complex Micelles
Published on: March 2, 2020
Denis Tararyshkin1, Elena Kramarenko, Alexei Khokhlov
1Physics Department, Moscow State University, Moscow 119992, Russia.
Abstract:
The behavior of lightly cross-linked polyelectrolyte hydrogel swelling in the solution of oppositely charged surfactants is studied theoretically. It is shown that if there is a lack of surfactant in the solution intragel separation into two phases differing in swelling ratios and surfactant content can take place. The surfactant ions concentrate and form micelles in a part of the gel and this part collapses while the rest of the gel remains swollen. The two-phase region widens with an increase of ionization degree of the gel subchains.
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