RELAXATION MECHANISMS IN WORM-LIKE MICELLES

Aqueous solutions of surfactants such as CTAC/NaSal and CTAB/KBr, cert ain dye molecules, S-8 rings in plastic sulphur or the alpha form of p olymethylstyrene are thought to self-assemble reversibly into long, li near flexible chains. The fascinating properties of these systems aris e from their propensity to randomly destroy or create connections betw een chains, a labile character which allows for exchange of material f rom chain to chain. As a consequence they exhibit a unique dynamic beh aviour, which reflects both the kinetics of exchange of material from chain to chain and the dynamic properties of polymers. In this paper f our types of reaction that have been proposed as candidates for descri bing the kinetics in these systems are reviewed. The implications of t hese mechanisms on the viscoelastic behaviour of the living polymer ma terials are also discussed.