Glucose Gemini Surfactant for Green Extraction

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Solution Overview

Problem

Traditional surfactants face challenges in meeting safety, environmental, and cost requirements due to instability, volatility, and potential toxicity, limiting their industrialization and application in industries such as detergents and cosmetics.

Innovation Solution

Development of dodecyl glucose gemini surfactants combined with tetradecyltrimethylammonium chloride or cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, optimizing surface activity and providing a novel non-toxic, biodegradable green surfactant compound suitable for detergents and biofilm protein separation, with a simple and industrially viable preparation method.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If traditional surfactants are used to achieve surfactant performance, then surfactant activity is obtained, but safety, environmental compatibility and cost requirements are not met

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesurfactant performanceVSAvoidtoxicity and environmental harm

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the chemical parameters of surfactants by replacing petrochemical raw materials with renewable resources such as fatty acids from animal and plant sources. This substitution transforms the chemical composition while maintaining surfactant performance, achieving both safety and environmental compatibility without sacrificing functionality

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The patent develops composite surfactant systems combining multiple surfactant types (anionic, cationic, nonionic) with glucose-based structures. These composite materials integrate the advantages of different surfactant classes to achieve enhanced performance while maintaining biodegradability and environmental friendliness

Inventive Principle:

Principle #40Composite materials

2Ease of manufacture

If epichlorohydrin is used in gemini surfactant preparation, then surfactant structure is formed, but instability, strong volatility and potential carcinogenic toxicity occur

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvegemini surfactant synthesisVSAvoidtoxicity and volatility

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSObject-generated harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts and removes the harmful epichlorohydrin component from the synthesis pathway. By eliminating this toxic intermediate and replacing it with safer alternatives, the method maintains the ability to form gemini surfactant structures while removing the sources of instability, volatility, and carcinogenic toxicity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent converts the harmful synthesis route into a beneficial one by replacing toxic reagents with environmentally friendly alternatives. The new method uses safe, biodegradable materials that eliminate harmful byproducts while maintaining or improving surfactant performance and stability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #22Blessing in disguise (Convert harm into benefit)

3Object-affected harmful factors

If conventional surfactants are replaced by green surfactants, then environmental protection and safety are improved, but preparative cost increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveenvironmental compatibilityVSAvoidproduction cost

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates green surfactants with multi-functional capabilities that can replace multiple different surfactants with a single compound. This versatility reduces the need for expensive specialized surfactants while maintaining broad applicability across detergent, cosmetic, and industrial applications, thereby lowering overall production costs

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

The combined surfactants exhibit significantly enhanced surface activity, with critical micelle concentrations three to ten times higher than individual components, making them suitable for industrial use while being non-toxic and biodegradable, thus addressing the limitations of traditional surfactants.

Implementation Method 1

A dodecyl glucose gemini surfactant compound comprises a dodecyl glucose gemini surfactant and tetradecyltrimethylammonium chloride; the structure of the dodecyl glucose gemini surfactant is represented by the following formula (IV).

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectSurface activity enhancement through molecular interaction: Surfactant

Implementation Method 2

the critical micelle concentrations three to ten times higher than individual components

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectMicelle formation through self-assembly: Self-Assembly

Data Source

PatentUS10093883B2Glucose gemini surfactant compound and method for preparation thereof

Publication Date: 2018.10.09 ZHEJIANG UNIV

AI summary

The present invention discloses a glucose gemini surfactant compound comprising a dodecyl glucose gemini surfactant and tetradecyltrimethylammonium chloride, or a tetradecyl glucose gemini surfactant and cetyl trimethylammonium bromide; the present invention also discloses a process for the preparation of the glucose gemini surfactant compounds. The glucose gemini surfactant compounds of the invention have the high activity characteristic of the gemini surfactant and is suitable for the separation and extraction of the detergents and the biofilm protein, and are novel non-toxic or low toxic and biodegradable glycosyl gemini surfactants. The preparation method of the compound surfactants is simple and easy to be industrialized.