Optimization of nonionic surfactants for hard-surface cleaning |
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Authors: | Michael F Cox Ted P Matson |
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Affiliation: | (1) Conoco Inc., P.O. Box 1267, 74603 Ponca City, OK |
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Abstract: | The hard-surface cleaning performance of various nonionic homologs was evaluated as a function of carbon chain length, ethylene
oxide (EO) content, blending and concentration. Results show carbon chain length to be very important to hard-surface cleaning.
Performance significantly increases as carbon-chain length decreases, probably as a result of an increase in solvency properties
as carbon chain length is decreased. EO content is also important, particularly if nonionics with longer carbon chain lengths
are used. Surfactant concentration (dilution) has little effect on the optimum ethylene oxide content but significantly affects
the optimum carbon chain length of the hydrophobe. With 5% homolog solutions, the optimally performing nonionic contains a
C6 hydrophobe, but with 0.2% solutions, the optimal carbon chain length is shifted to the C8–C10 range. This is thought to
result from a trade-off between the surfactant and solvent properties of the nonionic. Overall results show the optimal nonionic
for hard-surface cleaning to consist of a blend of C6, C8 and C10 alcohols ethoxylated to a 50% EO level. Commonly used surfactant
systems, e.g., alkylphenol ethoxylates and alkylphenol ethoxylate (APE)-butyl cellosolve (BC) blends, were also examined.
Results show that alkylphenol ethoxylates give relatively poor performance compared with lower molecular weight linear nonionics
because of the large size of their hydrophobe. Under concentrated use, a synergism does exist between APE and BC, but under
dilute conditions, the addition of BC is ineffective. BC does not help the performance of low molecular weight nonionics.
Surfactant-soil diffusion studies indicate that surfactant penetration of the soil may be the primary mechanism involved in
the hard-surface cleaning of solid soils.
Presented May 10, 1983, at the 74th Annual Meeting of the AOCS, Chicago, IL. |
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