Ester‐based surfactants: Are they stable enough?

Surfactants with an ester bond connecting the polar headgroup and hydrophobic tail are common. They easy to synthesize, they can often be made from natural raw materials their biodegradation profile is generally good, partly due lipase or esterase catalyzed breakdown of in sewage plants. A labile molecule may cause problems, however. formulated at relatively high pH it important that remain intact for a given period time. In this article we discuss alkaline hydrolysis different types ester-based surfactants—cationic, anionic nonionic—and also surfactant mixtures. We show has pattern than bonds non-surface active uncharged molecules. Cationic surfactants hydrolyzed rapidly while nonionic ester-containing resistant hydrolysis.