(125g) Diffusion of Micelles Leads to Prolonged Periods of Enhanced Transport to Interfaces

Above the critical micelle concentration surfactant transport to an interface becomes a complex reaction diffusion problem which is highly nonlinear. Correspondingly the exact behavior observed depends heavily on the region of parameter space studied. Here we present the results for a model surfactant system with an absorbing boundary condition. Such a condition is equivalent to systems where interface is rapidly being created. We find that at extended times a micelle exclusion zone forms near the interface which slows the rate of surfactant transport. However at high surfactant concentrations, micelle diffusion leads to an extended period of micelle shrinkage near the interface before the exclusion zone forms. Associated with this extended period of micelle shrinkage is an enhanced surfactant flux to the interface.