Combined use of lecithin and decyl polyglucoside in microemulsions: Domainof existence and cosurfactant effect

The phase diagram of a isopropyl myristate (IPM), water, lecithin/decyl pol yglucoside (1:1), butanol mixture was constructed and the region of the o/w microemulsion was examinated. The realm of existence of this system was al so investigated employing eight different, linear and branched short-chaine d alcohols as cosurfactants. The alcohol contribute to the extention of the microemulsion domain was explained in terms of lipophilicity and solubilit y. Moreover, the role of the cosurfactant was examined in a relationship st udy where the amount required to form the microemulsion of a series of twen ty alcohols was related to a set of new structural descriptors of these mol ecules, the WHIM indices.