Water incorporation into a micellar-lamellar phase (dodecyl maltoside-water)

Many alkylated sugars are surfactants, and show lamellar phases which prove to be identical to those of more conventional surfactants. Most, if not all, previous investigations focus on the behaviour of these compounds in pure form. Dodecyl maltoside shows the same lamellar phase as when dry, but on the addition of water the layer spacing expands, and on addition of more water, a hexagonal phase forms. The area per head group increases substantially with water addition, indicating that the water is incorporated into the layers, possibly at the head groups. We suggest that the hexagonal phase is the system's answer to the frustration caused by a large head group area compared with that of the tails.