Use of dye complexation dynamics to determine α‐cyclodextrin host:guest stability constants

Dynamics of host:dye complexation have been used, as an alternative to displacement assays, for determination of additional host:guest stability constants. Requirement of this new methodology is host:guest complexation being much faster than host:dye in order to guaranty that host:guest system is in equilibrium at each time during dye inclusion into the host cavity. Methodology was tested by studying α-CD:surfactant complexation using alkyltrimethylammonium surfactants with different alkyl chain length. Experimental results confirm the formation of 1:1 α-CD:surfactant complexes with binding constants strongly dependent on the surfactant hydrophobicity.