Reactions in Micellar Systems

Abstract

The notion of “green chemistry” has encouraged even synthetic organic chemists to include water as a solvent. Incredible selectivities and activities can be achieved through the addition of amphiphiles with a defined structure. The morphology of supramolecular assemblies or associates formed by surfactants vary according to the temperature and concentration. As a rule, reactions are typically conducted using simple spherical aggregates, that is, micelles in the nanometer range. The strong polarity gradient present between the hydrophilic surface and the hydrophobic core of the micelle means that both nonpolar and polar reagents can be solubilized. This solubilization results in reactants becoming more concentrated within the micelle than in the surrounding water phase and leads to an acceleration of the reaction and causes selective effects. The kinetic treatment of reactions in micellar systems can be accomplished by considering them as microheterogeneous two-phase systems.