Surfactants are often completely invisible to us and yet they are present in almost every chemical that we use in our daily life. They are found in toothpastes, cosmetics, sunscreens, mayonnaise, detergents, and an array of cleaning products. Traditional surfactants are known to have adverse environmental impacts spurring research into eco-friendly and cost-effective surfactants from renewable resources. Surfactants from Renewable Raw Materials examines the class of surfactants synthesized using plant-based raw materials detailing their properties, applications, bioavailability, and biodegradability. The concluding chapter reviews patent activity over the last decade. Additional features include: Addresses the tremendous variation found in the raw materials used to synthesize commercially available surfactants. Explores the selection of raw materials based upon the desired hydrophobic group or hydrophilic group to be incorporated into the product. Examines the characteristics and medicinal applications of pulmonary surfactants in preterm babies as well as their probable contribution in COVID-19 Discusses the biodegradability of surfactants to assist with the determination of truly green surfactants. This comprehensive reference will prove indispensable for professional and academic researchers creating or working with bio-based surfactants.

Most modern surfactants are readily biodegradable and exhibit low toxicity in the aquatic environment, the two criteria for green surfactants. However the majority are synthesised from petroleum, so over the past decade the detergent industry has turned its attention to developing greener routes to create these surfactants via renewable building blocks. Surfactants from Renewable Resources presents the latest research and commercial applications in the emerging field of sustainable surfactant chemistry, with emphasis on production technology, surface chemical properties, biodegradability, ecotoxicity, market trends, economic viability and life-cycle analysis. Reviewing traditional sources for renewable surfactants as well as recent advances, this text focuses on techniques with potential for large scale application. Topics covered include: Renewable hydrophobes from natural fatty acids and forest industry by-products Renewable hydrophiles from carbohydrates, amino acids and lactic acid New ways of making renewable building blocks; ethylene from renewable resources and complex mixtures from waste biomass Biosurfactants Surface active polymers This book is a valuable resource for industrial researchers in companies that produce and use surfactants, as well as academic researchers in surface and polymer chemistry, sustainable chemistry and chemical engineering.

The progressive dwindling of fossil resources, coupled with the drastic increase in oil prices, have sparked a feverish activity in search of alternatives based on renewable resources for the production of energy. Given the predominance of petroleum- and carbon-based chemistry for the manufacture of organic chemical commodities, a similar preoccupation has recently generated numerous initiatives aimed at replacing these fossil sources with renewable counterparts. In particular, major efforts are being conducted in the field of polymer science and technology to prepare macromolecular materials based on renewable resources. The concept of the bio-refinery, viz. the rational exploitation of the vegetable biomass in terms of the separation of its components and their utilisation as such, or after suitable chemical modifications, is thus gaining momentum and considerable financial backing from both the public and private sectors. This collection of chapters, each one written by internationally recognised experts in the corresponding field, covers in a comprehensive fashion all the major aspects related to the synthesis, characterization and properties of macromolecular materials prepared using renewable resources as such, or after appropriate modifications. Thus, monomers such as terpenes and furans, oligomers like rosin and tannins, and polymers ranging from cellulose to proteins and including macromolecules synthesized by microbes, are discussed with the purpose of showing the extraordinary variety of materials that can be prepared from their intelligent exploitation. Particular emphasis has been placed on recent advances and imminent perspectives, given the incessantly growing interest that this area is experiencing in both the scientific and technological realms. - Discusses bio-refining with explicit application to materials - Replete with examples of applications of the concept of sustainable development - Presents an impressive variety of novel macromolecular materials

One of the main challenges facing the chemical industry is the transition to sustainable operations. Industries are taking initiatives to reduce resource intensities or footprints, and by adopting safer materials and processes. Such efforts need to be supported by techniques that can quantify the broad economic and environmental implications of industrial operations, retrofi t options and provide new design alternatives. This contemporary overview focuses on cradle-to-grave life cycle assessments of existing or conceptual processes for producing valueadded fuels, chemicals, and/or materials from renewable agricultural residues, plant-derived starches and oils, lignocellulosic biomass, and plant-based industrial processing wastes. It presents the key concepts, systems, and technologies, with an emphasis on new feedstocks for the chemical industry. Each chapter uses common themes of specifi c raw materials, thus forming a natural progression throughout the book. The result is coverage from a wide range of perspectives, emphasizing not only the technical issues but also considering the market place and socio-economic aspects.

A solid introduction to the field of surfactant science, this new edition provides updated information about surfactant uses, structures, and preparation, as well as seven new chapters expanding on technology applications. Offers a comprehensive introduction and reference of the science and technology of surface active materials Elaborates, more fully than prior editions, aspects of surfactant crystal structure as well as their effects on applications Adds more information on new classes and applications of natural surfactants in light of environmental consequences of surfactant use