Quaternary ammonium surfactants disinfectant cleaners

Disinfection is also a benefit desired by consumers in toilet bowl cleaning. This can be achieved with quaternary ammonium surfactants, as in bathroom and allpurpose cleaners. Quats are effective bactericides at both low (1 to 4) and high (8 to 12) pH and so are compatible with very acidic toilet bowl cleaners. One of the problems with disinfection is knowing whether the product has been used at the proper dilution, and one toilet bowl cleaner formula gives the signal via a pH-dependent dye [375],... 

Similar to the disinfectant dilutable cleaners, disinfectant spray cleaners are intended to both clean and disinfect. Although they are very popular with consumers, they are not used without controversy in microbiological circles [50,51]. The usual disinfectant ingredient used in these cleaners is quats (quaternary ammonium surfactants), which were discussed with the dilutable cleaners. As previously mentioned, these disinfectants are inactivated by anionic surfactants, so these formulas are usually formulated with only nonionic surfactants. 

The quaternary ammonium compounds (qv) are manufactured by the reaction of an alkyl halide with a tertiary amine. The alkyl halide may be short-chain, long-chain, or benzyl. Selection of a long-chain alkyl group yields structures with variable composition and greatly adds to the chemical complexity inherent in this group. Investigation of structure-activity relationships has led to claims for superior efficacy or compatibility, most notedly with anionic surfactants in disinfectant-detergent cleaner systems, of closely related compounds in the family. 

These are the most important class of disinfecting surfactants, used not only for antisepsis but also as active ingredients in formulas claiming to clean and disinfect in domestic use. (a) Quaternary Ammonium Compounds ( Quats ). Alkylammonium chlorides (e.g., benzalkonium chloride) or bromides (e.g., cetrimonium bromide) are widely used as active ingredients in all-purpose cleaners (APCs). The cation can be viewed as an ammonium ion where the four hydrogen atoms have been replaced by organic groups. 

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