Co-surfactant Modulates Nanoparticle Dimensions Synthesized in Normal Microemulsion

In this study, we have examined micellar systems with varying amounts of co-surfactant. CMC was found to be more or less independent of the amount of co-surfactant. This indicates that the variation in the amount of the co-surfactant was found not to be playing any significant role in defining the dimension of the micellar aggregates. The same argument was extended when nanoparticles were synthesized within the micellar systems with varying co-surfactant amounts. It was seen from SEM/DLS studies that with an increasing amount of co-surfactant, the size of the NPs increased, suggesting that the dimensions of NPs synthesized in this medium is dependent on the amount of co-surfactant. Growth kinetic studies indicated faster nanoparticle growth in the microemulsion carrying higher co-surfactant, which can be directly correlated with increased fluidity of the micelles.