Effects of 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate ionic liquid on Triton X-100 aqueous micelles: solvent and rotational relaxation studies.

The effect of added room-temperature ionic liquids on the nature of water molecules in the palisade layer of a Triton X-100 (TX-100) micelle has been investigated using solvation and rotational relaxation studies of coumarin 153 in the presence of different wt % of [bmim][BF(4)] and thus to understand the changes in micellar palisade layer, especially the entrapped water structures in the palisade layer. It has been observed that in the presence of added [bmim][BF(4)] the solvation dynamics becomes faster. It has previously been demonstrated (Behera et al. J. Chem. Phys.2007, 127, 184501) that in the present micellar systems, in the presence of [bmim][BF(4)] micellar size and aggregation number (N(agg)) decreases giving rise to more water molecules penetrating in to the micellar phase which results in increased microfluidity. In accordance with solvation dynamics results, fluorescence anisotropy studies also indicate an increased microfluidity for the palisade layer of the TX-100 micelle with the added [bmim][BF(4)]. Wobbling-in-cone analysis of the anisotropy data also supports this finding.