On the effective interaction between an ion and a hydrophobic particle in polar solvents. A step towards an understanding of the Hofmeister effect?

Abstract

It has been shown that the generally accepted assumption that hydrophobic molecules and ions repel each other in polar solvents is only valid for moderately polar solvents. When the dipole moment of the medium molecules is increased, then ions and hydrophobic particles start to attract each other. For particles with the size and dipole moment of a water molecule one can expect that the effective potential curve between the two types of particles is almost flat. This opens up for an explanation of the 114 years old unexplained Hofmeister effect.