Polymers can be used to modulate the stability and functionality of surfactant micelles. The purpose of this study was to investigate the solubilization of an octane oil-in-water emulsion in mixtures of an anionic polymer (carboxymethyl cellulose) and anionic sodium dodecylsulphate (SDS), nonionic polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate (Tween 80) and cationic cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) surfactant micelles using dynamic light scattering, microelectrophoresis and turbidity measurements. The results showed that the addition of anionic carboxymethyl cellulose accelerated octane solubilization in cationic CTAB and CTAB-Tween 80 micelles, but did not affect the solubilization behaviors of micelles that were nonionic and anionic. The surfactant-polymer interactions were also studied using isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) to characterize different physiochemical interaction regions depending on surfactant concentration in surfactant-polymer systems. Upon octane solubilization in CTAB-carboxymethyl cellulose mixtures, shape transitions of polymer-micelle complexes may have taken place that altered light scattering behavior. Based on these results, we suggest a mechanism for oil solubilization in electrostatically-formed surfactant-polymer complexes. (C) 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.