Performance and physicochemical properties of α‐sulfo fatty acid methyl esters

Abstract

The detergency properties of α‐sulfonated fatty acid methyl esters (α‐SFMe) were evaluated and compared to those of conventional anionic surfactants by using a model heavy‐duty detergent formulation. Several physicochemical properties of surfactants were measured to investigate the effective factors on detergency. α‐SFMe showed good detergency performance under various washing conditions. These results were considered to correlate well with the good adsorption behavior on oils and dispersing capabilities for particles, as well as with the good solubilization capacity. Solubilization behavior of α‐SFMe is discussed in relation to micelle properties. It is suggested that α‐SFMe can form suitable micelles for solubilizing polar oils advantageously, due to its bulky hydrophilic group.