Microemulsions studies: Correlation between viscosity, electrical conductivity and electrochemical and fluorescent probe measurements

Abstract

Microemulsion systems involving brine and dodecane, and stabilized by sodium dodecylsulfate and both pentanol and heptanol have been investigated. Results of various experiments including conductivity and viscosity measurements, electrochemical diffusion coefficients and fluorescent probe studies have been gathered and compared in order to gain additional understanding of the microemulsion structure. The diffusion coefficients of hydrophilic hydroquinone and hydrophobic ferrocene obtained from the Levich equation at the rotating disc electrode, vary as the self-diffusion coefficients of water and dodecane, respectively; the results are consistent with those obtained by other workers from tracer or NMR self-diffusion studies. The fluorescence analysis of the polarity sensed by pyrene and the microviscosity felt by dipyrenylpropane suggests that the progressive addition of pentanol and dodecane to SDS micelles leads to solubilizate the probes more in the droplet interior where they experience a more hydrophobic environment. The systematic study of the two microemulsion systems provides insight into the microscopic properties of the oil domains in which the fluorescent probes are assumed to be located. In the system stabilized by n-heptanol as cosurfactant, the microviscosity sensed by P(CH₂)₃P is shown to be much lower than the bulk viscosity of the microemulsion. All the results evidence the well-known structural transitions: water continuous, bicontinuous and oil continuous in the single monophasic area of the brine/ SDS/n-pentanol/dodecane system; premicellar aggregates and water swollen micelles in the W/O area of the brine/SDS/n-heptanol/dodecane system.