Effect of self-assemblies of various surfactants in their single and mixed states on the BZ oscillatory reaction

Micelles of different surfactants are well known to affect chemical equilibria and reactivities by selectively sequestering the reagent substrates through electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions. In this article, the effects of micelles of various surfactants on different parameters of the Ce(IV)‐catalyzed Belousov–Zhabotinsky (BZ) oscillatory reaction at 35°C in nonstirred closed conditions are studied by employing spectrophotometry and tensiometry. Surfactants used in this study are the cationics hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and pentamethylene‐1,5‐bis(N‐hexadecyl‐N,N‐dimethylammonium)bromide gemini (Gemini), anionic sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate (SDBS), and nonionic Brij58, whereas the binary surfactant systems used are cationic–nonionic CTAB+Brij58 and anionic–nonionic SDBS+Brij58. The results revealed that the induction period shows a definite variation with increasing concentration of different surfactants above their critical micelle concentration (cmc). The amplitudes of oscillation and absorbance maxima and minima are enhanced in the presence of micelles of CTAB and Gemini surfactants, whereas micelles of SDBS and Brij58 have almost no effect on the nature of the oscillations. However, mixed micelles of CTAB+Brij58 and SDBS+Brij58 binary mixtures show a quite different effect on the overall behavior of the oscillations. The enhanced effect of CTAB and Gemini surfactants on the overall nature of oscillations has been attributed to the positive charge on the surface of their micelles and to some extent on the presence of nitrogen in their head group. The effect of mixed binary micelles may be attributed to their synergistic nature. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 42: 659–668, 2010