Chemical reactions in microemulsions: Tracing the progress of a reaction from the influence of the reactants on the phase behaviour

Nucleophilic displacement reactions and ester hydrolysis have been performed in microemulsions stabilized by a nonionic amphiphile. The effect of the reactants added on the phase behaviour was studied as well as the effect of the progress of the reaction. The latter causes changes of the phase boundaries of the microemulsions with time. These changes were followed for tracing the progress of the reaction. The knowledge of the phase behaviour of mixtures of water, oil and nonionic amphiphile permits separating reactants and products.