The World of Surfactants from the Perspective of Titration

What do personal care products like shampoo and cleaning products such as detergents have in common? They contain surfactants which facilitate the mixing of generally immiscible substances such as oil and water. The word surfactant itself is composed from the term surface-active agent, and this describes the mode of action precisely: surfactants decrease surface tension and allow the formation of a dispersion between different substances. Surfactant determination is crucial for the quality control of everyday products (e.g., shampoo, detergents, toothpaste, disinfectants) as well as raw materials. When reliable determination of the surfactant content is required, potentiometric titration is the best choice. Titration of surfactants can be challenging since many factors have to be considered. Metrohm has ample experience in method development and offers various titrators and sensors well-suited for reliable surfactant content determination.

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