The general chemical formula of alkyl sulfate is ROS03M, where M can be Na, K, NH4, NH(CH2CH2OH)3, and the number of carbon atoms in R is 8-18. This type of surfactant has good foaming ability and washing performance, is stable in hard water. Meanwhile, iits aqueous solution is neutral or slightly alkaline. So it is mainly used in detergents.
The main representative of alkyl sulfate is sodium lauryl ether sulfate, SLES 70. It is easily soluble in water, has strong foaming power, full, white and fine foam. It also has excellent emulsifying performance and washing ability.
Alkyl sulfate is obtained by sulfating fatty alcohol and neutralizing it with alkali. Industrially, fatty alcohols can be obtained from fats or fatty acid esters through hydrogenation decomposition, or from ethylene through Ziegler reactions. Sulfating agent can use sulfuric acid, chlorosulfonic acid, sulfamic acid, sulfur trioxide etc.
The properties of alkyl sulfate are affected by the chain length and degree of branching of the alkyl group. Experiments have shown that C12-C14 alkyl sulfates have high solubility. C12-C16 alkyl sulfates have a strong ability to reduce surface tension, among which C14-C15 is the strongest. Alkyl sulfates of C12 have the best wettability. C13-C16 alkyl sulfates have excellent washing performance, which is similar to that of α-olefin sulfonates. C14-C15 alkyl sulfates have good foaming properties, which are close to C14-C16 α-olefin sulfonates.
If you have any questions on Anionic Surfactant. We will give the professional answers to your questions.