The Catalytic Influence of Polymers and Surfactants on the Rate Constants of Reaction of Maltose with Cerium (IV) in Acidic Aqueous Medium

Abstract

Kinetics of the reaction of maltose with cerium ammonium sulfate were analyzed spectrophotometrically by observing the decrease of the absorbance of cerium (IV) at 385 nm in the presence and absence of polyethylene glycols (600, 1500, and 4000) and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), in addition to anionic micelles of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), cationic micelles of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and non-ionic micelles of Tween 20 surfactants. Generally, there is little literature about using the polymers (PEGs and PVP) as catalysts in the oxidation-reduction reactions. Therefore, the major target of this work was to investigate the influence of the nature of polymers and surfactants on the oxidation rates of maltose by cerium (IV) in acidic aqueous media, as well as employing the Piszkiewicz model to explain the catalytic effect. The kinetic runs were derived by adaptation of the pseudo first-order reaction conditions with respect to the cerium (IV). The reaction was found to be first-order with respect to the oxidant and fractional-order to maltose and H2SO4. The reaction rates were enhanced in the presence of polymer and micellar catalysis. Indeed, the surfactants were found to work perfectly close to their critical micelle concentrations (CMC). Electrostatic interaction and H-bonding appear to play an influential role in binding maltose molecules to polymer/surfactant micelles, while oxidant ions remain at the periphery of the Stern layer within the micelle.