Glass transition behavior of octyl β-d-glucoside and octyl β-d-thioglucoside/water binary mixtures

The lyotropic behavior and glass-forming properties of octyl β-d-glucoside (C8Glu) and octyl β-d-thioglucoside (C8SGlu)/water binary mixtures were evaluated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and polarizing optical microscopy (POM). The results clearly indicate that the mixture forms a glass in the supercooling state of liquid crystalline phases such as cubic, lamellar, and smectic. The glass transition temperature (Tg) of the mixture was strongly dependent on solute concentration, with a higher concentration correlating with a higher Tg. The experimental Tg was consistent with the predicted value calculated using the Couchman–Karasz equation in both the C8Glu and C8SGlu/water mixtures. The change of heat capacity at Tg showed the two bending points under variation of concentrations. And the highest temperature of phase transition from lamellar to isotropic solution was observed at around 50% molar concentration. It was expected that non-percolated state of water existed in extremely higher concentration ranges.

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