Chapter 6
The Dynamics of Water Molecules
Confined in the Interior of DMPC
Phospholipid Reverse Micelle
D. Makieła, Przemysław Raczy ´
nski, and Zygmunt Gburski
6.1 Introduction
Amphiphilic molecules like surfactants and lipids exhibit a variety of phases in
aqueous environment. They undergo self-association under specific conditions to
form aggregates such as vesicles, bilayers, micelles, etc. [1–5]. The geometrical
form of these aggregates is a consequence of a delicate balance between two
opposing forces. The attractive tail−tail hydrophobic interaction is the driving force
for the aggregation of surfactant molecules, whereas the electrostatic repulsion
between the head group sets a lower limit on the size that an aggregate can attain.
A typical micelle is spherical with the hydrophilic “head” regions in contact with
surrounding environment, sequestering the hydrophobic single-tail regions in the
micelle center. Micelles have been the subject of intense interest for several decades,
both from a fundamental physical chemistry point of view and because of their
widespread applications in detergent, cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and food industries.
In some nonpolar solvents can be formed the spherical aggregates of amphipathic
molecules with the hydrophobic part of each molecule pointing outward. These
aggregates are called reverse micelles because of the reverse of the situation in
normal micelles. Reverse micelles have recently garnered significant attention as
model systems to explore the effects of confinement [6–9]. Confined environments
occur naturally in many biologically important systems as well as a range of
physically interesting materials such as porous glasses. The beauty of the reverse
micelle is that it is easily created, shows substantial stability, and provides a
D. Makieła · P. Raczy´ nski · Z. Gburski ()
Institute of Physics, University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland
Silesian Centre of Education & Interdisciplinary Research, Chorzów, Poland
e-mail: damian.makiela@smcebi.edu.pl;; zygmunt.gburski@us.edu.pl
© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018
O. Fesenko, L. Yatsenko (eds.), Nanochemistry, Biotechnology, Nanomaterials,
and Their Applications, Springer Proceedings in Physics 214,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92567-7_6
89
The Dynamics of Water Molecules
Confined in the Interior of DMPC
Phospholipid Reverse Micelle
D. Makieła, Przemysław Raczy ´
nski, and Zygmunt Gburski
6.1 Introduction
Amphiphilic molecules like surfactants and lipids exhibit a variety of phases in
aqueous environment. They undergo self-association under specific conditions to
form aggregates such as vesicles, bilayers, micelles, etc. [1–5]. The geometrical
form of these aggregates is a consequence of a delicate balance between two
opposing forces. The attractive tail−tail hydrophobic interaction is the driving force
for the aggregation of surfactant molecules, whereas the electrostatic repulsion
between the head group sets a lower limit on the size that an aggregate can attain.
A typical micelle is spherical with the hydrophilic “head” regions in contact with
surrounding environment, sequestering the hydrophobic single-tail regions in the
micelle center. Micelles have been the subject of intense interest for several decades,
both from a fundamental physical chemistry point of view and because of their
widespread applications in detergent, cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and food industries.
In some nonpolar solvents can be formed the spherical aggregates of amphipathic
molecules with the hydrophobic part of each molecule pointing outward. These
aggregates are called reverse micelles because of the reverse of the situation in
normal micelles. Reverse micelles have recently garnered significant attention as
model systems to explore the effects of confinement [6–9]. Confined environments
occur naturally in many biologically important systems as well as a range of
physically interesting materials such as porous glasses. The beauty of the reverse
micelle is that it is easily created, shows substantial stability, and provides a
D. Makieła · P. Raczy´ nski · Z. Gburski ()
Institute of Physics, University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland
Silesian Centre of Education & Interdisciplinary Research, Chorzów, Poland
e-mail: damian.makiela@smcebi.edu.pl;; zygmunt.gburski@us.edu.pl
© Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018
O. Fesenko, L. Yatsenko (eds.), Nanochemistry, Biotechnology, Nanomaterials,
and Their Applications, Springer Proceedings in Physics 214,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92567-7_6
89