Microcalorimetric determination of effect of the antioxidant (Quercetin) on polymer/surfactant interactions

Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) and batch calorimetry techniques have been used to evaluate the effect of added antioxidant (Quercetin, QN) on the binding between a polymer/surfactant complex, namely the sodium salt of polystyrene sulfonate (PSS) and typical anionic surfactant sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS). An indirect isotherm approximation method and the Satake–Yang model have been used to evaluate the binding parameter ( Ku ), adsorption cooperativity ( u ), and the Gibbs free energy of cooperative and non-cooperative binding (Δ G C and Δ G N ) from the ITC data. The enthalpy of dissolution of QN into various PSS/water and PSS/SDS/water solutions has been evaluated from batch calorimetry to study the energetics of the polymer/surfactant binding in the presence of QN.