NANO-SURFACTANTS AND ENHANCEMENT OF THEIR DETERGENTY

Abstract: Surfactants have been a crucial subject of investigation since the genesis of life. These smart chemicals are very well known for their surface tension reducing abilities and thus find a diverse scope in essential industrial applications such as in day-to-day toiletries, cosmetics and pharmaceutics. Above Critical Micelle Concentration (CMC), the surfactants form Nano-sized particles called as the micelles which are responsible for the entrapment and cleaning of the dirt. Many production firms especially the detergent formulating industry thrive on this mechanism. Surfactants being the costliest ingredient, the major concern of the detergent manufacturing industries is related to the quantity as well as the expected efficiency of these chemicals. However, one can observe a slight anomaly in the anticipated efficacy of the Nano-surfactants (Nano-sized surfactant micelles). This paper emphasizes on how the hardness present in the water is the cause for such eccentric behaviour of these chemicals. Clinging to the cost-effectiveness, this study also employs a comparison between various Builders which are used in order to control the hardness in the water thus gaining the desired results. An attempt has been made to upsurge the detergency with the aid of Builders altogether enhancing coherence and effectiveness.

Keywords: Surface tension, Critical Micelle Concentration (CMC), Nano-Surfactants, Hardness of water, Builders, Detergency