Cellulose Derivatives as Surface Active Materials
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Date
2000-12
Authors
Woo, Choon Kong
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Abstract
A surface active material or agent is characterized by the tendency to adsorb to surfaces
and interfaces, the phrase literally means ''active at a surface". Surfactant is another
term used to describe this type of material. The term interface denotes a boundary
between any two immiscible phases and surface indicates that one of the phases is a
gas. The driving force for a surfactant to adsorb at an interface is the reduction of the
free energy of that phase boundary [JON9Hl.
Most of the surfactant molecules consist of at least two parts, one of them is soluble in
a specific fluid (the lyophilic part) and another which is insoluble (the lyophobic part).
When the t1uid is water, these parts are called the hydrophilic and hydrophobic part
respectively. Schematically, the former is referred to as head group and the later as tail
(Figure 1.1 ). The term amphiphile is usually synonymous with surfactant. The
solubility of an amphiphile in water depends on the balance between the hydrophobic
alkyl chain length and hydrophilicity of the head group.
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Keywords
Cellulose Derivatives as , Surface Active Materials