Micellar Solubilization of Phenols With One or Two Hydroxyl Groups Using Biological Surfactant Rhamnolipid

ABSTRACT We studied the solubilization of phenols with one and two hydroxyl groups (phenol, p‐cresol, guaiacol, and pyrocatechol, resorcinol, hydroquinone) by micelles of the biological surfactant rhamnolipid using NMR diffusometry. We discuss the results within the framework of a model of two states of solubilizer molecules in solution: free in the aqueous phase and bound in surfactant micelles. The solubilization characteristics of rhamnolipid were calculated: the proportion of solubilized molecules р, micelle‐water partition coefficient K m , and molar solubilization ratio (MSR) depending on the concentration of rhamnolipid in solutions.