Membrane decoration by amphiphilic block copolymers in bicontinuous microemulsions

Abstract

A study was carried out to determine the effect of a nearly symmetric amphiphilic block copolymer on the structure and phase behavior of ternary amphiphilic system of water, oil, and surfactant. Microemulsions consisting of equal amounts of water and n-decane, the nonionic surfactant C10E4, and small amounts of the amphiphilic block copolymers PEP-PEO were used. All the samples were subjected to small angle neutron scattering (SANS) experiments. The results indicate that the effect of anchored polymers on the behavior of a membrane ensemble is universal, and depends only on a given dimensionless quantity.