Composition of mixed surfactant–charged polymer complexes adsorbed at the air/water interface

Abstract

Specular neutron reflection and small-angle neutron scattering have been used to evaluate the solution and interfacial properties of the anionic surfactant, sodium dodecyl sulfate, SDS, and of the mixed anionic–non-ionic surfactants of SDS and hexaethylene glycol monododecyl ether, C₁₂E₆, in the presence of cationic polymers (dimethyldialylammonium chloride–acrylamide copolymers). The data have been interpreted using a simple model of surfactant association to polymers and regular solution theory has been applied to include the mixed-surfactant systems.