Association and fragmentation in reverse micelles

Abstract

We have developed a computer simulation to model the formation of reverse micelles from the association and fragmentation of diblock polymeric chains. Using this model, we can observe the evolution of the average cluster size as a function of time. Furthermore, we can explicitly relate the aggregation number N to Ps or the breakup constant, which is inversely proportional to τ, the lifetime of the chain in the cluster. We find that Ps∼exp(−N), which differs from the scaling relationship that exists between these variables when the associating species are particles. We find that the value of τ (or Ps) affects not only the average cluster size but also, the actual mechanism of structural rearrangement for these micelles.