Micellization

3.1 Introduction
In chapter 1 the characteristic property of amphiphiles in accumulating at
air-water or oil-water interface was discussed in terms of the entropy gain caused
by disruption of organized water structure and the removal of mobility constraints
as the hydrophobic region was removed from an aqueous environment. An
alternative to the crowding of the interface as the surfactant concentration is
increased is provided by the formation of small aggregates or micelles in the bulk
of the solution. The hydrophobic moieties compose the core of the micelle, being
shielded from the surrounding solvent by the shell of ionic head groups. There is
much experimental evidence to suggest that the mobility of hydrocarbon chains
in the micellar interior resembles that in a liquid hydrocarbon. Hence the process
of micellization does indeed represent a method by which the hydrocarbon chains
may regain their mobility.
The concentration at which micelles first appear in solution is termed the
critical micelle concentration (CMC). Experimentally the CMC is determined
from the inflection point of plots of some physical property of the solution as a
function of concentration. A wide variety of techniques involving the
measurement of such physical properties as the surface tension, conductivity, light
scattering intensity and osmotic pressure have been used in the determination of
the CMC. The instrinsic reliability of these techniques has been reviewed. It is
important to note that the change in physical properties at the CMC occurs over a
narrow concentration range rather than at a precise