Counter-ion specificity explored in abnormal expansion of supra-molecular aggregates in aqueous solution of alkaline metal salts

Ionic effects in aqueous solution of macro-ions showing specificity and unconventional characters, respectively, receive a lot of interests recently; however, the complexity of specific ion effects in unconventional phenomena remains ambiguous. In this study, the effects of univalent ions on aggregation of supra-molecular nano-fibrils with charged carboxylate groups on the surface as a prototype of macro-ions are investigated by Small Angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS) in aqueous solutions of alkaline metal chlorides. It is found that the columnar bundles of charged fibrils are expanded in certain salt concentration range contradicting the conventional screening effects of salts. The degree of expansion is dominated by cations as Na+ induces drastic effects in comparison to rather gentle changes from K+ and Cs+. The specific cations effects observed by SAXS correlate with the pH behavior of the solutions, an indicator of surface charge, or number of carboxylate groups along the supra-molecular fibrils. It is postulated that while Na+ with stronger affinity to carboxylates apparently reduces the surface charge, K+ and Cs+ only weakly interact with carboxylates and induce minor changes, accounting for the cation-sensitive aggregation behavior of fibrils observed by SAXS. By probing the bundling aggregation of charged supra-molecular nano-fibrils in salty water, we provide direct evidence of specific counter-ion effects in unusual expansion caused by univalent salts. (C) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC.