AOT REVERSE MICELLES - DEPLETION MODEL

The structure of AOT microemulsions in various bulk solvents is investigated by SAXS and conductivity measurements. The intermicellar interactions are analyzed with the sticky hard-sphere model taking into account the discret nature of the solvent. A model is proposed to explain the decrease in the interdroplet attractions with the increase of volume fraction of reverse micelles. It is based on the existence of depletion forces between reverse micelles. It allows the determination of a theoretical relation between the stickiness parameter and the reverse micelle volume fraction which is compared to experimental data. The percolation threshold of reverse micellar systems is then qualitatively determined in three different solvents.