CO2/N2 and light dual-stimuli responsive wormlike micelles based on CTAB and conventional compounds

Abstract

Recently, smart wormlike micelles (WLMs) that respond reversibly to external environmental stimuli and display tunable rheological properties have attracted considerable interest. However, the surfactants used in the smart WLMs are always commercially unavailable, and specialized organic synthesis is needed. Here, CO2/N2 and light dual stimuli-responsive WLMs can be prepared by CTAB, cinnamic acid (CA), and cetyl dimethylamine (CDA), which are all commercially available compounds. The zero-shear viscosity (η 0) of the ternary system (CTAB-CA-CDA-CO2) reaches a maximum value of 530 Pa·s. Furthermore, the system produced a fast response to the dual stimuli of CO2 and UV light, showing a circulatory gel/sol transition, which reflected changes in the self-assembly from entangled worms to spheres or rod-like micelles. The smart WLMs using cheap and commercially available compounds not only avoid complex organic synthesis or purification, but also allow precise control of the WLMs with dual responsiveness, which have a wide range of applications in large scale processes.