They are utilized in every industry sector, including household detergents, drilling muds and food products to pharmaceuticals. Surfactant is a term that comes from the word "surface active agent". They are amphiphilic molecules which are absorbed at the interface between air and water. At the interface they are aligned in a way that the hydrophobic portion is in the air and the hydrophilic portion is in water. This will result in the reduction of surface tensions or interfacial tensions. Go here: nonionic surfactant suppliers for effective information. Surfactant fundamentals Surfactants are hydrophobic molecules with hydrophilic parts. The hydrophobic tail can be a fluorocarbon or a hydrocarbon. Because the hydrophobic tails of surfactants are usually quite similar, they are usually classified according to their polar head. Non-ionic surfactants are those with no charge in their head groups. If the head has an positive or negative charge, it's called anionic or cationic, depending on the. If it contains both positive and negative groups, the surfactant can be referred to as Zwitterionic. Surfactants that are anionic and nonionic are the most widely used types of surfactants in the industry. Surfactants with anionic properties are commonly used in shampoos and laundry detergents. Nonionic surfactants are employed in the food industry, as well for wetting agents. Because they are more costly to manufacture, both cationic surfactants and zwitterionic are better for special uses. Surfactants absorb at the interfaces Due to their amphiphilic nature, surfactants absorb at the air-water or water-oil interface. At the interface, surfactants align themselves to ensure that the hydrophobic component is located in air (or oil) while the hydrophilic portion is in water. Let's focus on the air-water interface to ensure simplicity. The tension on the surface of water is high because of the powerful cohesive forces between water molecules. Surfactants absorb water and disrupt these interactions. Water molecules and surfactants have less intermolecular force than between two water molecules, so surface tension will decrease. Micelles develop when the concentration of surfactant is high. The critical micelle concentration is the level where micelles begin to form. The main purpose of the surfactants is to reduce the surface and interfacial tension and stabilize the interface. The washing of laundry without surfactants will be very difficult, similar to many food items like mayonnaise or ice-cream. It is crucial to optimize surfactants to suit different uses. Interfacial and surface tension measurements play a critical function.