Metallosurfactant Aggregates as Catalysts for the Hydrolytic Cleavage of Carboxylate and Phosphate Esters

Abstract

Metallosurfactant aggregates have grasped a great attention of researchers worldwide owing to their unique surface activity and catalytic efficiency. They serve themselves as perfect blends of both surface science and metallo-organic chemistry. Metallosurfactant aggregates have a variety of fascinating applications like in drug delivery, membrane mimetics, in various separation methods and most importantly in catalytic cleavage of various toxic esters. Due to the resemblance in the catalytic property of metallosurfactant aggregates with natural enzymes they are broadly employed as metalloenzyme mimics for the hydrolysis of activated carboxylic esters, phosphate esters and amides in general laboratory settings. This review summarizes the design and syntheses of metallosurfactant aggregates and their role as proficient catalysts for the hydrolysis of different esters. Special emphasis is given toward the development of structurally diverse surfactant type ligands and use of variety of metal ions specifically for the hydrolytic cleavage of carboxylate and phosphate esters. Generally, the catalytic strengths of numerous synthesized metallosurfactant aggregates have been quantized by exploring kinetic investigations. Hence, a brief account on the quantitative treatment of rate data with the help of kinetic models has also been presented.