Interaction between ethyl(hydroxyethyl)cellulose and sodium dodecyl sulphate in aqueous solution

Abstract

Using sodium activity, viscosity, and cloudpoint measurements, it has been shown that sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) binds to ethyl(hydroxyethyl)cellulose in a cooperative manner. In the absence of salt the binding leads to an increase in the clouding temperature, but when a small amount of salt (0.01 molal) is present first a drastic decrease and then an equally drastic increase in the cloud point temperature is observed. The binding of SDS also initially leads to an increase in viscosity followed by a decreased viscosity at higher SDS concentrations. A molecular mechanism explaining the observed behavior is given.