Surface Adsorption and Micelle Formation of Polyoxyethylene-type Nonionic Surfactants in Mixtures of Water and...

The interfacial properties of polyoxyethylene alkyl ether-type nonionic surfactants (CnEm) were studied in a hydrophilic room-temperature ionic liquid, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate (bmimBF4), in the presence of water. These properties were assessed using static surface tension, pyrene fluorescence, and dynamic light scattering measurements. The interfacial properties were strongly dependent on the solution composition. Increased water concentration lowered the critical micelle concentration (cmc). The cmc was also affected by the lengths of both the alkyl and polyoxyethylene chains, but a greater impact was observed for the alkyl chain length. These results indicate that micellization occurs as a result of solvophobic interaction between surfactant molecules in the water/bmimBF4 mixed solutions, similar to aqueous surfactant systems. The cloud point phenomenon was observed for CnEm with a relatively low hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) value, and the relationship between the cloud point and water/bmimBF4 composition exhibited a convex upward curve. Furthermore, the mixing of bmimBF4 with water increased the surfactant solubility for water-rich compositions, suggesting that bmimBF4 acts as a chaotropic salt.