Relationship of structure to properties of surfactants. 16. Linear decyldiphenylether sulfonates

The properties of some well‐characterized sodium linear decyldiphenylether (C10DPE)sulfonates have been studied. Among the properties investigated are dynamic and equilibrium surface tension, critical micelle concentration (CMC), area per molecule at the aqueous solution/air interface, wetting time by the Draves technique, foaming by the Ross‐Miles method, solubilization, and hydrotropy. The decyldiphenylether moiety appears to be equivalent to a terminally substituted straight alkyl chain of 16 carbon atoms. The trialkyl‐ and dialkyl‐mono‐sulfonates have solubilities of < 0.01 g/dm3 in water, but are readily soluble in hexane. The didecyldiphenyl ether disulfonate (DADS) has a very low CMC value (1.0 × 10−5 mol dm−3) in aqueous 0.1 N Na+ solution (NaCl), characteristic of surfactants with two hydrophilic and two hydrophobic groups. It also has a much larger area per molecule at the aqueous solution/air interface than the monodecyldiphenyl‐ether monosulfonate (MAMS) and a much higher surface tension at the CMC. MAMS has a much lower surface tension at a surface age of 1 second (γ1s) than either DADS or the monodecyldiphenylether disulfonate (MADS). In agreement with γ1s and γeq values, wetting times increase in the order: MAMS < DADS < MADS and initial foam heights decrease in the order: MAMS > DADS > MADS. Solubilization for three water‐insoluble surfactants decreases in the order: DADS > MAMS > MADS, while hydrotropy is most pronounced with the disulfonates.