Parameters concerning the microemulsion phase behavior of nonionic surfactants of the alkyl polyglycol ether type have extensively been investigated in the last years. By studying these, essential parameters for future applications can be determined. Especially in the field of enhanced oil recovery, lubricants, and cosmetic applications these parameters are of special interest. In this work, the influence of technical grade nonionic surfactants on the phase behavior and the resulting surfactant efficiency has been studied. For this, the alkyl chain length, the degree, type, and order of alkoxylation of the surfactant have been varied. The investigation of these parameters has been conducted by measuring the phase behavior via the Kahlweit fish diagram. It has been found that varying the C-chain length has a great impact on the efficiency, whereas the influence of the ethoxylation degree is minor. By the introduction of propylene oxide, the efficiency has been improved significantly. Additionally, it is important to have the right order of alkoxylation. If the fatty alcohol is first ethoxylated and afterwards propoxylated the efficiency is significantly decreased.
During synthesis of the surfactants, several byproducts are formed that impact the physico-chemical properties as well as the quality of the product. Removal of these impurities is hence of vital interest, but the purification has remained chemically challenging. In this work, the ion exchange resin type I strong base anion polymeric catalyst was used to remove impurities such as remaining raw material and byproducts from different ether carboxylic acid surfactants. The efficiency of this preparative purification method was determined through analysis of the product composition using different analytical techniques such as titrimetric acid and saponification value determination, gas chromatography, Infrared (IR) and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The results showed the high efficiency of the purification of the ether carboxylic acid surfactants using ion exchange resin. For all purified samples, the amount of byproducts such as esters and remaining raw material was found significantly reduced. Pure anionic surfactants (>90%) were obtained. Its ease of use and high efficiency render the method suitable for carboxymethylated surfactants. Additional investigations on industrial scales and further surfactant purification are yet to be analyzed.
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