Novel Gel Phase: A Cubic Phase of Densely Packed Monodisperse, Unilamellar Vesicles

摘要: A novel type of gel phase has been investigated in the ternary surfactant system sodium oleate/octanol/water. It occurs at relatively high octanol content (molar ratio ∼2:1 for octanol/oleate) and a total concentration amphiphile range 5−15 wt %. This is transparent, isotropic, highly viscous possesses elastic properties (“ringing gel”). Microstructural investigations by means freeze-fracture electron microscopy small-angle neutron scattering show that it mainly composed small unilamellar vesicles. The observed size also good agreement with measured rheological properties. These vesicles are remarkably monodisperse form ordered (presumably cubic type); i.e., this first time such liquid crystalline array observed.