Rheological behavior in water of complexes formed from poly(sodium 2-(acrylamido)-2-methylpropanesulfonate) and positively charged rodlike micelles.

The viscoelastic behavior of aqueous solutions of an ionic complex formed from poly(sodium 2-(acrylamido)-2-methylpropanesulfonate) and rodlike mixed micelles of dimethyloleylamine oxide (DMOAO) and hexadecyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAC) was investigated under oscillatory conditions. The DMOAO/CTAC mixed micelles exhibited high zero-shear viscosities (eta0) depending on the mole fraction of CTAC in the mixed micelle (Y) in the range 0Y0.25. The addition of the polyanion had no effect on the rheological behavior of the mixed micelles when Y<0.02 at an ionic strength (mu) of 0.2. However, when Y was increased to a certain level (Yc), eta0 decreased drastically; Yc depended on mu but not on the polymer concentration. These observations indicate the formation of an ionic complex between the polymer and micelle when YYc. The reciprocal of steady-state compliance (Je(-1)) began to decrease gradually at Y approximately Yc and then leveled off at Y>0.06. The relaxation time (tau) was found to be more strongly dependent on Y. Thus, the large decrease in eta0 was attributed mainly to a decrease in tau while the number density of junctions decreased only slightly. Therefore, it is concluded that polymer-micelle complex maintains a rodlike structure with some entanglements remaining at Y<0.12.