Foam, emulsion and wetting films stabilized by polyoxyalkylated diethylenetriamine (DETA) polymeric surfactants

Abstract

This review explores three (A, B, C) polyoxyalkylated diethylenetriamine (DETA) polymeric surfactants belonging to the group of star-like polymers. They have a similar structure, differing only in the number of polymeric branches (4, 6 and 9 in the mentioned order). The differences in these surfactants' ability to stabilize foam, o/w/o and w/o/w emulsion and wetting films are evaluated by a number of methods summarized in Section 2. Results from the studies indicate that differences in polymeric surfactants' molecular structure affect the properties exhibited at air/water, oil/water and water/solid interfaces, such as the value of surface tension, interfacial tension, critical micelle concentration, degree of hydrophobicity of solid surface, etc. Foam, emulsion and wetting films stabilized by such surfactants also show different behavior regarding some specific parameters, such as critical electrolyte concentration, surfactant concentration for obtaining a stable film, film thickness value, etc. These observations give reasons to believe that model studies can support a comprehensive understanding of how the change in polymeric surfactant structure can impact thin liquid films properties. This may enable a targeted design of the macromolecular architecture depending on the polymeric surfactants application purpose.