Oxidation of nonionic surfactants with molecular oxygen

Abstract

Kinetic regularities are studied for the air oxidation of surfactants that are widely used in the food industry, such as natural phosphatidylcholine (egg lecithin, PC) and synthetic nonionic surfactants Triton X-100 (ТХ-100), Tween 65, and Pluronic F68. Azobis(amidinopropane)-dichloride-initiated oxidation of these surfactants in an aqueous medium at 37°C develops via the chain free-radical mechanism. The chain length is equal to 5–10 units, depending on the initiator-to-surfactant concentration ratio. The rate of surfactant oxidation in an aqueous medium is proportional to the rate of radical initiation. At the same mass concentrations of the reagents, the rate of PC oxidation is several times higher than the oxidation rates of the other surfactants. The addition of TX-100 to PC liposomes decelerates the oxidation; i.e., TX-100 plays the role of an antioxidant for PC. The superposition of the oxidation rates of individual and mixed PC and TX-100 with the sizes of the microaggregates formed in their aqueous solutions shows that the antioxidation action of TX-100 is realized via the formation of a protective layer composed of its ethylene oxide groups, which shields PC liposomes from radicals, which are initiated in the bulk of an aqueous phase due to the decomposition of azobis(amidinopropane) dichloride.