QSPR study of critical micelle concentration of anionic surfactants using computational molecular descriptors.

A data set of 181 diverse anionic surfactants has been investigated to relate the logarithm of critical micelle concentration (cmc) to the molecular structure using Comprehensive Descriptors for Structural and Statistical Analysis (CODESSA Pro) software. A fragment approach provided superior quantitative structure-property relationship (QSPR) models in terms of statistical characteristics and predictive ability. The regression equations provided insight into the structural features of surfactants that influence cmc. The most obvious influence on cmc was manifested by hydrophobic fragments expressed by the topological and geometrical descriptors, while the hydrophilic fragment is represented by constitutional, geometrical, and charge related descriptors. Significantly important molecular descriptors in the selected QSPR models were topological, solvational, and charge-related descriptors as the driving force of the intermolecular interactions between anionic surfactants and water.