(256g) Self-Assembly of Adsorbed Surfactant Molecules at Metal-Water Interfaces

Surfactant molecules are widely used in oil and gas industry as corrosion inhibitors. These inhibitor molecules are known to self-assemble in various morphologies at the metal-water interfaces. We have studied the adsorption and self-assembly of surfactant molecules of different chemistries and geometry using classical molecular dynamics of a coarse-grained model. We show that (a) hydrophobic interactions between surfactant tails play an important role in their adsorption and self-assembly on surfaces, and (b) the morphology of the adsorbed film is dictated by the molecular geometry. In addition, in an oil saturated aqueous phase, surfactant molecules have a tendency to entrain oil molecules into the adsorbed films and this process dramatically changes their adsorbed morphology.