Non-ionic surfactants

Even if the trend towards renewable feedstocks is slowly becoming recognizable, the demand for conventional surfactants in the HI&I sector is still present. TER Chemicals offers both sources to meet the individual requirements of the market.

Hygienically washed laundry, clean dishes, and shiny surfaces

Non-ionic surfactants: one product group, many possibilities

Alcohol ethoxylates are some of the most frequently used non-ionic surfactants. Depending on the chain length, the structure of the fatty alcohols, and the ethylene oxide units, different HLB (hydrophilic-lipophilic balance) values can be created to produce different physical properties. In general, surfactants with a low HLB value have good fat-dissolving properties, whereas a high HLB value results in good wetting of hydrophilic surfaces. This lends itself to a variety of applications such as liquid detergents, hard surface cleaners, liquid dishwashing detergents, metal cleaners and toilet cleaning products.


About poloxamers and PEGs

EO/PO block copolymers (poloxamers) offer a wide range of physical properties. They are useful wherever low-foaming, dispersing, wetting or emulsifying properties are required.

Polyethylene glycols (PEGs) are inert surfactants with a hydrophilic structure. They have excellent solubility in water as well as in polar organic solvents. Depending on their molecular weight, they act as rheology modifiers, dispersants, stabilizers, antistatic agents, or foam reducers.

More information is available here.


Do you have any current development projects or are you aiming to implement a second source for existing surfactants? Our team of experts is here to help you with any information or requests for samples.

Stefan Koch
Head of BU Life Science

Telephone: +49 40 300 501 8141
E-mail: s.koch@terchemicals.com