Surfactant use

Dextrin Polyethylene glycol 400 Use 5 mL of 2% aqueous solution of chloride-free dextrin per 25 mL of 0. IM halide solution. Prepare a 50% (v/v) aqueous solution of the surfactant. Use 5 drops per 100 mL end-point volume. 

The surfactants used in the emulsion polymerization of acryhc monomers are classified as anionic, cationic, or nonionic. Anionic surfactants, such as salts of alkyl sulfates and alkylarene sulfates and phosphates, or nonionic surfactants, such as alkyl or aryl polyoxyethylenes, are most common (87,98—101). Mixed anionic—nonionic surfactant systems are also widely utilized (102—105). 

In other surfactant uses, dodecanol—tetradecanol is employed to prepare porous concrete (39), stearyl alcohol is used to make a polymer concrete (40), and lauryl alcohol is utilized for froth flotation of ores (41). A foamed composition of hexadecanol is used for textile printing (42) and a foamed composition of octadecanol is used for coating polymers (43). On the other hand, foam is controUed by detergent range alcohols in appHcations by lauryl alcohol in steel cleaning (44), by octadecanol in a detergent composition (45), and by eicosanol—docosanol in various systems (46). 

Natural Waters. Many water systems have a natural tendency to produce foam upon agitation. The presence of poUutants exacerbates this problem. This was particularly severe when detergents contained surfactants that were resistant to biodegradation. Then, water near industrial sites or sewage disposal plants could be covered with a blanket of stable, standing foam (52,59). However, surfactant use has switched to biodegradable molecules, which has gready reduced the incidence of these problems. 

Three generations of latices as characterized by the type of surfactant used in manufacture have been defined (53). The first generation includes latices made with conventional (/) anionic surfactants like fatty acid soaps, alkyl carboxylates, alkyl sulfates, and alkyl sulfonates (54) (2) nonionic surfactants like poly(ethylene oxide) or poly(vinyl alcohol) used to improve freeze—thaw and shear stabiUty and (J) cationic surfactants like amines, nitriles, and other nitrogen bases, rarely used because of incompatibiUty problems. Portiand cement latex modifiers are one example where cationic surfactants are used. Anionic surfactants yield smaller particles than nonionic surfactants (55). Often a combination of anionic surfactants or anionic and nonionic surfactants are used to provide improved stabiUty. The stabilizing abiUty of anionic fatty acid soaps diminishes at lower pH as the soaps revert to their acids. First-generation latices also suffer from the presence of soap on the polymer particles at the end of the polymerization. Steam and vacuum stripping methods are often used to remove the soap and unreacted monomer from the final product (56). 

An alternative to this process is low (<10 N/m (10 dynes /cm)) tension polymer flooding where lower concentrations of surfactant are used compared to micellar polymer flooding. Chemical adsorption is reduced compared to micellar polymer flooding. Increases in oil production compared to waterflooding have been observed in laboratory tests. The physical chemistry of this process has been reviewed (247). Among the surfactants used in this process are alcohol propoxyethoxy sulfonates, the stmcture of which can be adjusted to the salinity of the injection water (248). 

LialkylSulfosuccinates. Introduced in 1939 by the American Cyanamid Company under the Aerosol trademark, dialkyl sulfosuccinates have become widely used specialty surfactants (Table 8) (9). Within the limitations in hydrolytic stabiUty imposed by the presence of the ester groups, sulfosuccinates are mild, versatile surfactants used when strong wetting, detergency, rewetting, penetration, and solubilization effectiveness is needed. 

Fluorochemical repeUents are commercially avaUable as emulsions or solvent solutions. The most widely used emulsions for fabrics and carpet are cationic, but nonionic emulsions are becoming more prevalent. The emulsifier in the formulation can affect the repeUency and durabUity of the product (28). Surfactants used in the fluorochemical emulsions or added to finish baths should be nonrewetting and have a minimum adverse effect on oU repeUency. Solvent solutions of fluorochemicals are becoming less common as a result of toxicity and environmental concerns. 

Accurate information oa the size of the defoamer market is impossible to obtaia. There are too many types of materials and suppHers iavolved. Particularly for the more common oils and surfactants, defoaming is a very small part of their total usage, and no pubHc information is available on what fraction of manufacturers sales is ia the area of foam coatrol. Evea for more expeasive materials such as the poly(alkyleae oxide) block copolymers, there is ao way of distinguishing betweea their use as defoamers and other significant surfactant uses such as de-emulsifiers. 

Many of the surfactants made from ethyleneamines contain the imidazoline stmcture or are prepared through an imidazoline intermediate. Various 2-alkyl-imidazolines and their salts prepared mainly from EDA or monoethoxylated EDA are reported to have good foaming properties (292—295). Ethyleneamine-based imida zolines are also important intermediates for surfactants used in shampoos by virtue of their mildness and good foaming characteristics. 2- Alkyl imidazolines made from DETA or monoethoxylated EDA and fatty acids or their methyl esters are the principal commercial intermediates (296—298). They are converted into shampoo surfactants commonly by reaction with one or two moles of sodium chloroacetate to yield amphoteric surfactants (299—301). The ease with which the imidazoline intermediates are hydrolyzed leads to arnidoamine-type stmctures when these derivatives are prepared under aqueous alkaline conditions. However, reaction of the imidazoline under anhydrous conditions with acryflc acid [79-10-7] to make salt-free, amphoteric products, leaves the imidazoline stmcture essentially intact. Certain polyamine derivatives also function as water-in-oil or od-in-water emulsifiers. These include the products of a reaction between DETA, TETA, or TEPA and fatty acids (302) or oxidized hydrocarbon wax (303). The amidoamine made from lauric acid [143-07-7] and DETA mono- and bis(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate is a very effective water-in-od emulsifier (304). 

Non-ionic surfactants used in detergents, paints, herbicides, pesticides and plastics. Breakdown products, such as nonylphenol and octylphenol, are found in sewage and industrial efffuents Products of combustion of many materials Widely used as plasticisers for PVC. Common environmental pollutants... 

Internal surfactants, i.e., surfactants that are incorporated into the backbone of the polymer, are commonly used in PUD s. These surfactants can be augmented by external surfactants, especially anionic and nonionic surfactants, which are commonly used in emulsion polymerization. Great attention should be paid to the amount and type of surfactant used to stabilize urethane dispersions. Internal or external surfactants for one-component PUD s are usually added at the minimum levels needed to get good stability of the dispersion. Additional amounts beyond this minimum can cause problems with the end use of the PUD adhesive. At best, additional surfactant can cause moisture sensitivity problems with the PUD adhesive, due to the hydrophilic nature of the surfactant. Problems can be caused by excess (or the wrong type of) surfactants in the interphase region of the adhesive, affecting the ability to bond. 

Stearyl alcohol is a nonionic surfactant used as a hair coating in shampoos and conditioners. 

Also called nonyl phenoxy ethoxylate, or nonyl phenol. Slow to biodegrade. Nonionic surfactant. Used in dry detergents. 

Alkanesulfonates prove important auxiliaries in the textile and leather industries, both for manufacture of (synthetic) fibers and for textile refinement. Surfactants are also important for finishing of textiles, e.g., ensuring antistatic properties. Some processing steps and the surfactants used are listed in Table 32. An interesting overview of surfactants in the textile industry has been published [96]. 

Sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate is undoubtedly the anionic surfactant used in the greatest amount because it is the basic component in almost all laundry and dishwashing detergents in powder and liquid forms. However, alcohol and alcohol ether sulfates are the more versatile anionic surfactants because their properties vary, with the alkyl chain, with the number of moles of ethylene oxide added to the base alcohol and with the cation. Consequently, alcohol and alcohol ether sulfates are used in almost all scientific, consumer, and industrial applications. 

Tallow alcohol sulfate is an important surfactant used in heavy-duty detergents. The unsaturated part of the alkyl chain of tallow alcohol gives their sulfates an improved solubility with excellent detergent and foaming characteristics. 

Good thermal stability is a requirement for surfactants used in processes to enhance oil recovery. This applies most particularly to steam foam applications where surfactants such as AOS may be exposed to temperatures far above 100°C albeit for short times. Many authors have approached the problem of the thermal stability of a surfactant through a determination of the activation energy of the thermal degradation process. Once the activation energy is known, it can be used to estimate the rate of thermal degradation under various conditions. 

Also the a-ester sulfonates are less important today. In the Federal Republic of Germany, for example, the total production of surfactants was about 700,000 t/a in 1993. For a more detailed analysis of different types of surfactants, use must be made of data collected before the unification of Germany. In 1988 the consumption of surfactants in detergents was about 227,500 t/a, the consumption of anionic surfactants was about 116,000 t/a and less than 1000 t/a of a-sulfo fatty acid esters [5] (the values refer to German Detergent Law). 

The solubility of numerous ionic surfactants in water is strongly reduced in the presence of divalent cations. Stability in hard water is thus an important fact for surfactants used as detergents. Their stability can be measured as the amount of divalent cations at which the formation of a poorly soluble surfactant salt leads to permanent turbidity. The values given in the literature can only be... 

TABLE 18 Important Factors for Surfactants Used in Emulsion Polymerization... 

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