Head group specificity of novel functionalized surfactants: synthesis, self-assembly and calcium tolerance

• Published in: Tetrahedron letters Vol. 55; no. 43; pp. 5925 - 5931
• Main Authors: Sarkar, Deboleena, Shukla, Ravi Kant, Gadgil, Vijay, Pramanik, Amitava
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: OXFORD Elsevier Ltd 22.10.2014; Elsevier
• Subjects: Aggregation number; Attachment; Ca2+ tolerance; Calcium; Chains; Chemistry; Chemistry, Organic; CMC; NMR; Physical Sciences; Science & Technology; Self assembly; Surface tension; Surfactant; Surfactants; Synthesis (chemistry); Tolerances; Water hardness; CMC; Aggregation number; NMR; Surface tension; Ca2+ tolerance; Surfactant; PYRIDINIUM CATIONIC LIPIDS; GENE TRANSFECTION EFFICACIES; ALKYLOXYETHYLENE SULFATE; AROMATIC BACKBONE; ANIONIC SURFACTANT; BIOSURFACTANTS; DELIVERY; OILY SOIL REMOVAL; DNA COMPLEXES; CHLORIDE
• ISSN: 0040-4039; 1873-3581
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tetlet.2014.08.111

•Novel surfactants with analogous head groups have been synthesized and characterized.•Surfactant properties and self assembly behaviour were studied with respect to each other.•One type is found to be more calcium tolerant than the other, reasons disclosed. The present work describes the synthesis, characterization and application of functionalized surfactants derived through simple organic reaction steps. These surfactants have been particularly tailor made to resist hardness due to calcium ions in water. It is unique of its kind because here the surfactants have an analogous hydrophobic chain but differ structurally in the composition of the head groups in terms of the position of attachment of the chain. The effect of this small variability in the head group on the surfactant property, adsorption, self assembly and calcium tolerance behaviour has been studied in detail. This kind of phenol–keto surfactants has not been reported before. It was also found that one of the surfactants was more tolerant towards Ca2+ ion than the other. The individual packing behaviour of the surfactants at the air–water interface has been projected to cause this difference which is very interesting.