Surfactants are surface
active agents that aids in the lowering of interfacial tension between
two liquids or between a solid and a liquid. All detergents, emulsifiers,
wetting agents, foaming agents and dispersants fall under the class of
surfactants.
Surfactant molecules are amphiphilic in nature chrachterized
by a long hydrophobic tail group and a polar hydrophilic head group .This
allows surfactants to achieve solubility in both polar and non polar
medium.
When added to water the surfactant molecules orient
themselves in a manner such that the hydrophobic tail groups move away from
water and the polar head group remains next to water and they form an aggregate
called micelle. During cleaning of any substance
all dirt, grease and oily matter get trapped among the micelle which can be
dislodged later by application of small mechanical force.
Surfactants are classified according to the charge
present on their polar head group.
- · Cationic Surfactants bear a positive charge on their polar head
- · Anionic surfactants hold a negatively charged polar group
- · Amphoteric surfactants have both negative and positive charge on the polar group
- · Non ionic surfactants contain neutral head group
Surfactants find application in a wide range of products like
detergents, washing liquids and soaps, shampoos, fabric softener etc.
Mainly all detergents are anionic in nature the most common
being Sodium Lauryl Sulphate. Many sulphonates, carboxylates and phosphonates
based anionic surfactants are also used in detergents.
Cationic surfactants are usually not used in cleaners, they
mostly find application as fabric softeners. These are
mainly based on quaternary ammonium compounds having strong
anti microbial properties and are widely used as hard surface disinfectants.
Non ionic surfactants do not dissociate into ions in aqueous
medium. They find application as wetting agents, emulsifiers, cleaning agents
etc. In many cases non ionic surfactants find preference over the ionic one
which shows poor solubility and cleaning action in hard water. Non ionic
surfactants have outstanding solvent property and possess high chemical
stability .In health care sectors , textile industries ,agricultural sector and
various other industries non ionic
surfactants are used widely.
Amphoteric Surfactants
are user friendly products. Mostly they are used along with anionic and
cationic surfactants to enhance their cleaning action. Due to their low
toxicity and non irritant nature they are used in baby shampoos. In view of
their low toxic quality and low irritation on the skin and eyes amid the use
procedure and in addition high
biodegradability, hard water resistance, emulsifying, scattering, wetting, foaming
, and the high similarity with other surfactants,
their applications in chemical, textiles, food, pigments etc. are on the rising
side.
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