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Updated: Aug 15, 2026

Extraction and Characterization of Surfactants from Atmospheric Aerosols
Published on: April 21, 2017
Synthesis and characterization of new cationic quaternary ammonium polymerizable surfactants
A Samakande1, P C Hartmann, R D Sanderson
1UNESCO Associated Centre for Macromolecules, Department of Chemistry and Polymer Science, University of Stellenbosch, Private Bag X1, 7602 Matieland, South Africa.
Abstract:
Two new polymerizable surfactants (surfmers), (11-acryloyloxyundecyl)dimethylethylammonium bromide (ethyl surfmer) and (11-acryloyloxyundecyl)dimethyl(2-hydroxyethyl)ammonium bromide (hydroxyethyl surfmer), were synthesized and characterized. The binary phase diagrams of both surfmer/water systems are described. Both surfmers can form isotropic solutions and lamellar lyotropic liquid crystalline phases. The hydroxyethyl surfmer/water system forms a lamellar phase for weight concentrations of surfmer between 70 and 90% relative to between 75 and 85% for the ethyl surfmer/water system. The differences in the self assembly of these surfmers were attributed to the ability of hydroxyethyl surfmer to form hydrogen bonds (between two head groups and with water), whereas no such interactions can occur with the ethyl surfmer system.
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