Synthesis, Surface Activity and Application Performance of Three Tailed Carbosilane Surfactants

Carbosilane surfactant, with carbosilane as a hydrophobic group linked to hydrophilic groups, have attracted considerable attention owing to hydrolysis resistance. In this study, a novel nonionic carbosilane surfactant series (i.e., trialkylsilylpropanol polyoxyethylene ethers) was designed and synthesized. The structures of the surfactants were then characterized, and their surface activities, aggregation properties, wettabilities, and foaming behaviors were investigated. The surfactants exhibited a lower surface tension, superior wetting properties, low foam height, no gel phase, and high detergency. These properties render them suitable for preparing concentrated liquid detergents, for which gel formation is undesirable. Notably, the surfactants form onion-like vesicular structures in an aqueous solution, demonstrating their potential to be applied as drug carriers in the pharmaceutical sector.