What is micelle?

Surfactant in  solution are often associated colloids , that is they tend to form aggregates of colloidal dimensions which exist in equilibrium with molecules or ions  from which they are formed . Such aggregated particles  are termed as " micelles ". These are , therefore, also known as associated colloids.

Micelles are formed when a variety of molecules including soaps and detergents are added to water . The molecule may be a fatty acid , a salt of fatty acid ( soaps  ) ,phospholipids  or other similar molecules . the molecule must have strongly polar ' head '   and a non polar chain of hydrocarbons ' tail.When this type of molecule is added to water the nonpolar tails of the  molecule clump in to the centre of a ball like structure     called  micelle , because they are hydrophopic ( or water hating ) The polar head of the molecule presents itself for interaction with water molecules at the ouside of micelles.