Microemulsion formation and detergency of Dowfax surfactants

Abstract

Winsor Type I-III microemulsion phase behavior was studied for detergency application as a function of salinity. The microemulsion systems consisted of com-mercially available DOWFAX 8390, bis-ethylhexyl sulfosuccinate (Aerosol-OT), sorbitan monolaurate (Span 20), and propylene glycol. This research was conducted to examine the relationship between the phase behavior and the detergency of hexa-decane and motor oil staining on cotton and polyester fabrics in the laundering process. The system exhibiting supersolubilization, as well as the middle-phase mi-croemulsion systems, were studied for detergency. Spectrophotometric and reflec-tance measurements were used to quantify soil removal after washing. Maximum detergency was found to correspond to the optimal salinity for hexadecane but not for motor oil. From the detergency results, the middle-phase microemulsion system was more efficient than the supersolubilization system for hexadecane staining, whereas for motor oil staining, both systems did not differ significantly in terms of solubilization capacity and detergency performance. The detergency results revealed that soil removal of both hexadecane and motor oil from cotton fabric was better than for soil removal from polyester fabric.