Micellization of surfactants in acetamide melt

Electrical conductances of solutions of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) in acetamide melt were measured at 89 degrees C as a function of concentration. The dependence of molal conductance of SDS and CPC on concentration has been compared with that of normal electrolytes in acetamide melt. Both SDS and CPC are found to micellize in acetamide melt. A mixed electrolyte model has been used to compute the micellization parameters, viz., critical micelle concentration, aggregation number, and counterion binding constant, from the conductance data. Surface potentials of the micelles were computed by solving the nonlinearized Poisson-Boltzmann equation. The free energy terms for micellization were also evaluated.