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Salting out of amphiphiles from aqueous solution is a process of central importance in aqueous solution chemistry and of major application in the concentration of macromolecules and the crystallization of proteins. Despite its importance, our understanding of the mechanism is poor, there being no direct experimental evidence to support the several competing explanations in the literature. Using neutron diffraction with isotope substitution, we report a structural study of the effect of adding a simple salting out agent (NaCl) to a dilute solution of an amphiphile (t-butanol). The results show clearly that the anion is central to driving the changes in association of the amphiphile through the formation of an anion bridge between the polar ends of neighboring alcohol molecules. This further exposes the nonpolar surface of the amphiphile and suggests that further association may then occur through hydrophobic interaction. The mechanism uncovered is both different from those currently in the literature and relatively simple, and offers a possible route forward to understanding the variation in salting out efficacy of different ions as indicated by the Hofmeister or lyotropic series. © 2003 American Institute of Physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The structure of a 0.86 mole fraction solution of tertiary butanol in water at room temperature has been investigated by neutron diffraction with hydrogen/deuterium isotope substitution. The intermolecular correlations between the alcohol and water molecules have been extracted using the empirical potential structure refinement technique. The results highlight the creation of water pockets within the solution structure. These pockets mediate the interactions that occur between the alcohol hydroxyl groups, reducing the level of direct alcohol-alcohol hydrogen bonding. The results show that only a small amount of water is required to drive this solution in the direction of hydrophobic behavior more commonly associated with the water-rich solution compositions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]