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Effect of Long-Chain Length on the Surface Activities of Zwitterionic Imidazolium-Based Surfactants: 1-Carboxymethyl-3-alkylimidazolium Inner Salts

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Journal of Surfactants and Detergents

Abstract

Zwitterionic imidazolium-based surfactants, namely 1-carboxymethyl-3-alkyl imidazolium inner salts (C n imCM, n = 10, 12, and 14), were synthesized. Their molecule structures were characterized by means of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI–MS), 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) and elemental analysis. Compared to the structurally related N-alkylbetaines (C n H2n+1N+(CH3)2CH2COO−), the CMCs of C n imCM are smaller than those of N-alkylbetaines. The effect of the long-chain length on the typical physicochemical properties of C n imCM was studied. It is found that the lengthening of the long-chain enhances the surface activity of C n imCM. The tendency for C n imCM surfactants is similar to the case of the structurally related traditional zwitterionic N-alkylbetaines.

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Acknowledgments

This work was sponsored by the Qing Lan Project (2010), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (JUSRP211A10), the open fund of Zhejiang Zanyu Technology Co., Ltd. and the Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Fine Petrochemicals (KF0903).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Key Laboratory of Food Colloids and Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Chemical and Material Engineering, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, China

    Bang-qing Ni, Jie Hu, Xue-feng Liu, Hui Chen & Yun Fang

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  1. Bang-qing Ni
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  2. Jie Hu
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Correspondence to Xue-feng Liu.

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Ni, Bq., Hu, J., Liu, Xf. et al. Effect of Long-Chain Length on the Surface Activities of Zwitterionic Imidazolium-Based Surfactants: 1-Carboxymethyl-3-alkylimidazolium Inner Salts. J Surfact Deterg 15, 729–734 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11743-012-1399-z

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