Issue 35, 2021

Good's buffer ionic liquid tunes the phase behavior of an anionic surfactant SDBS-stabilized n-octane–water microemulsion and the stability of the solubilized horseradish peroxidase

Abstract

A Good's buffer ionic liquid (GB-IL) composed of quaternary ammonium cations and Good's buffer anions is first introduced into a microemulsion system as a self-buffering and biocompatible electrolyte. The effects of the constituting ions of a GB-IL and their concentrations on the phase behavior of the anionic surfactant SDBS stabilized n-octane–H2O microemulsion system were studied for the first time using the εβ fish-like phase diagram method. The result indicates that the phase behavior of the above microemulsion system is greatly affected by GB-IL cations with a longer alkyl chain on the cation being more favorable for phase inversion. Compared with NaCl, a GB-IL of the same concentration is more efficient for achieving phase inversion, due to the dual role of an electrolyte and a co-alcohol. In addition to the phase behavior, the stability of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) solubilized in an SDBS stabilized bicontinuous microemulsion is also affected by a GB-IL. It is found that the variation of the cationic alkyl chain has a negligible effect on the microemulsion microstructure, but has a significant influence on the stability of the solubilized HRP. At a fixed concentration of the GB-IL, the quaternary ammonium cation with a longer alkyl chain is better for the stabilization of the HRP activity. For a given GB-IL, a higher level of the GB-IL results in a better HRP stability. More importantly, the GB-IL-buffered microemulsion, at the same level of the buffering salt, is more advantageous than the phosphate-buffered one for the stabilization of the HRP activity. This advantage is more pronounced for higher concentrations of the GB-IL. This difference in the HRP stability, caused by the buffering salts, should be ascribed to the microemulsion microstructure effect as well as the Hofmeister effect. The present study provides a guideline for the construction of a bicontinuous microemulsion with a simplified composition and stabilizing effect on the solubilized enzyme.

Graphical abstract: Good's buffer ionic liquid tunes the phase behavior of an anionic surfactant SDBS-stabilized n-octane–water microemulsion and the stability of the solubilized horseradish peroxidase

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
26 May 2021
Accepted
29 Jul 2021
First published
30 Jul 2021

Soft Matter, 2021,17, 8086-8094

Good's buffer ionic liquid tunes the phase behavior of an anionic surfactant SDBS-stabilized n-octane–water microemulsion and the stability of the solubilized horseradish peroxidase

X. Li and X. Huang, Soft Matter, 2021, 17, 8086 DOI: 10.1039/D1SM00783A

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