Lyotropic Phase Behaviour and Structural Parameters of Monosaccharide and Disaccharide Guerbet Branched-Chain <i>β</i>-D-Glycosides

Abstract

The phase behaviour and self-assembly structural parameters of a pair of monosaccharide and disaccharide Guerbet branched-chain β-D-glycosides, namely 2-octyldodecyl β-D-glucoside (β-Glc-C12C8) and 2-octyldodecyl β-D-maltoside (β-Mal-C12C8), have been studied by means of optical polarizing microscopy (OPM) and small-angle X-ray diffraction at room temperature (25°C). These compounds are sugar-based glycolipid surfactants having a total chain length of C20, and differ based on the increasing number of hydroxyl groups of the sugar headgroup (glucose and maltose). The repeat spacings obtained by X-ray diffraction as a function of water content have been used to determine the limiting hydration for the two glycosides. At room temperature, β-Glc-C12C8 and β-Mal-C12C8 have limiting hydrations of 22 wt% and 25 wt%, corresponding to 8 10 and 10 12 water molecules per glycoside, respectively. At all water contents between 5 and 29 wt % water, these compounds adopt inverse hexagonal (HII) or fluid lamellar (Lα) phases. The structural parameters of these phases have been determined from the diffraction data, from the X-ray repeat spacings, densities and concentration of the glycosides.