In 20th century detergent industry has increased a lot

consumers spend $24.3 billion on soap and detergent alone.

Different MNC’S have promised the consumers for better
products.

EMULSION
An emulsion is a mixture of two or more liquids that are
normally immiscible . Emulsions are part of a more general
class of two-phase systems of matter called colloids. Although
the terms colloid and emulsion are sometimes used
interchangeably, emulsion should be used when both phases,
dispersed and continuous, are liquids. In an emulsion, one liquid
(the dispersed phase) is dispersed in the other (the
continuous phase). Examples of emulsions include vinaigrettes,
homogenized milk, mayonnaise, and some cutting
fluids for metal working.

The word "emulsion" comes from the Latin word for "to milk",
as milk is an emulsion of fat and water, along with other
components.

Two liquids can form different types of emulsions. As an

example, oil and water can form, first, an oil-in-water
emulsion, wherein the oil is the dispersed phase, and water is
the dispersion medium. Second, they can form a water-in-oil
emulsion, wherein water is the dispersed phase and oil is the
external phase. Multiple emulsions are also possible, including
a "water-in-oil-in-water" emulsion and an "oil-in-water-in-oil"
emulsion.[3]

Emulsions, being liquids, do not exhibit a static internal

structure. The droplets dispersed in the liquid matrix (called
the “dispersion medium”) are usually assumed to
be statistically distributed. To stabilize the emulsion a third
substance is added which is known as emulsifying agent or
emulsifier. Emulsifying agent from a protective layer around
the drops of dispersed phase and prevent them coming
together hence stabilize the emulsion. Soaps and detergents
are good emulsifiers.
PROPERTIES
• Emulsions contain both a dispersed and a continuous
phase, with the boundary between the phases called the
"interface".

• Emulsions tend to have a cloudy appearance because the

many phase interfaces scatter light as it passes through
the emulsion.

• They are thermodynamically unstable thus they are not

formed spontaneously.

• If the emulsion is dilute enough, light will be scattered

more, and the emulsion will appear bluer – this is called
the "Tyndall effect".

• If the emulsion is concentrated enough, the color will be

distorted toward comparatively longer wavelengths, and
will appear more yellow.

• Two special classes of emulsions – micro emulsions and

nan

• Emulsions, with droplet sizes below 100 nm – appear

translucent.

• Whether an emulsion of oil and water turns into a "water-

in-oil" emulsion or an "oil-in-water" emulsion depends on
the volume fraction of both phases and the type of
emulsifier (surfactant) present.
 • If the droplet sizes in the emulsion are below about
100 nm, the light can penetrate through the emulsion
without being scattered.

TYPES OF EMULSIONS
Depending upon the nature of the dispersed phase, the
emulsions are classified as:

(I) Oil-in-water emulsions (O/W): The emulsion in which oil

is present as the dispersed phase and water as the dispersion
medium (continuous phase) is called an oil-in-water emulsion.
Milk is an example of the oil-in-water type of emulsion. In milk
liquid fat globules are dispersed in water. Other examples are,
vanishing cream etc.

(ii) Water-in-oil emulsion (W/O): The emulsion in which

water forms the dispersed phase, and the oil acts as the
dispersion medium is called a water-in-oil emulsion. These
emulsion are also termed oil emulsions. Butter and cold
cream are typical examples of this types of emulsions. Other
examples are cod liver oil etc.

EMULSYGYING AGENTS
“Emulsifying agents are substances that are soluble in both
fat and water and enable fat to be uniformly dispersed in
water as an emulsion. Foods that consist of such emulsions
include butter, margarine, salad dressings, mayonnaise and ice
cream. Stabilizers maintain emulsions in a stable form.
Emulsifying agents are also used in baking to aid the smooth
incorporation of fat into the dough and to keep the
crumb soft.”

Emulsions are stabilized by adding an emulsifier or emulsifying

agents. These agents have both a hydrophilic and a lipophilic
part in their chemical structure. All emulsifying agents
concentrate at and are adsorbed onto the oil: water interface
to provide a protective barrier around the dispersed droplets.
In addition to this protective barrier, emulsifiers stabilize
the emulsion by reducing the interfacial tension of the
system.

All emulsifying agents must be chemically stable in the

system, inert and chemically non-reactive with other emulsion
components, and nontoxic and nonirritant. They should also be
reasonably odorless and not cost prohibitive.
TYPES OF EMULSIFIERS
Some commonly used emulsifiers are:-

• Natural emulsifiers: - Agar gelatin leno tin cholesterol

methyl cellulose carboxyl methyl cellulose etc.

• Auxiliary emulsifiers: - A variety of fatty acid (e.g.

stearic acid), Fatty alcohols (e.g. steady of acetyl alcohol

and fatty esters (e.g. glycerol monostearate serve to

stabilize emulsion through their ability to thicken the

emulsion.

• Synthetic emulsifier: - Detergents, Soap, Benzalkonium

chloride, polyoxoethylene, or Glycerol esters.

DEMULSIFICATION
Demulsification is the process of separation of a emulsion into
its constituent liquids. The different techniques applied for
demulsification are centrifugation, freezing, boiling,
electrostatic precipitation etc. various chemical method are
employed which destroy the emulsifying agents.
Non-biodegradable detergents
The detergents which are not decomposed buy bacteria are
called non-biodegradable detergents.

Example detergents having branched chains.

DETERGENTS AS AN EMULSIFIER
Detergents are the substances that can act in the removal of
the dirt. Detergent mainly act on the oily films that trap dirt
particle. Detergents are long chain molecules molecules of
sodium N-dodecyl benzene sulphate and sodium N
dodecylsulphates. The detergent have a hydrocarbon portion
soluble in oil and an ionic portion soluble in water.

The detergent molecules acts as emulsifier that is by

bridging the oil and water phase, it rinks the oil into tiny
droplets suspended in water. The disruption of oils film allows
the dirt particle to become stabilized.
Uses of emulsification
 In medicine a wide variety of Medical and Pharmaceutical
preparations are emulsion. It is believed that in this form
they can be more effective and easy to assimilate.

 In metallurgical operations: - Emulsion plays an important

role in this industry the metals are concentrated by
froth flotation which involves the treatment of
pulverized emulsion of Pine oil.
 In disinfectant: - the disinfectant such as Dettol gives
emulsion of oil in water type when mixed with water.
 Many insecticides are oil in water emulsion for spraying.
 Emulsions are commonly used in many major chemical
industries. In the pharmaceutical industry, they are used
to make medicines more palatable, to improve
effectiveness by controlling dosage of active ingredients,
and to provide improved aesthetics for topical drugs such
as ointments. Nonionic emulsions are most popular due to
their low toxicity, ability to be injected directly into the
body, and compatibility with many drug ingredients.
Cationic emulsions are also used in certain products due
to their antimicrobial properties.
 In the agricultural industry, emulsions are used as
delivery vehicles for insecticides, fungicides and
pesticides. These water insoluble biocides must be
applied to crops at very low levels, usually by spraying
through mechanical equipment. Emulsion technology allows
these chemicals to be effectively diluted and provides
improved spray ability. Nonionic emulsions are often used
in this regard due to their low foaming properties and
lack of interaction with biocide agents they are carrying.

 In cosmetics, emulsions are the delivery vehicle for many

hair and skin conditioning agents. Anionic and non-ionic
emulsions are used to deliver various oils and waxes which
provide miniaturization, smoothness and softness to hair
and skin. Emulsions formed with cationic emulsifiers are
themselves effective conditioning agents since their
positive charge is attracted to the negative sites on the
hair, thus allowing them to resist rinse off.

 Many paints and inks are based on emulsions. Such

products may be true liquid-in-liquid emulsions or they
may be dispersions. Dispersions are similar to emulsions
except that the dispersed phase is usually finely divided
solid particles. The same surfactant technology used to
formulate emulsions is used to create dispersions of
 pigments that are used in paints and inks. These
dispersions are designed to dry quickly and form
waterproof films, while not affecting the color. In this
regard emulsions provide benefits over solvent containing
systems because of reduced odor and flammability.

 Many food products are in the form of emulsions. An

example of a naturally occurring food emulsion is milk
which contains globules of milk fat (cream) dispersed in
water. The whiteness of milk is due to light scattering as
it strikes the microscopic fat particles. Salad dressings,
gravies and other sauces, whipped dessert toppings,
peanut butter, and ice cream are also examples of
emulsions of various edible fats and oils. In addition to
affecting the physical form of food products, emulsions
impact taste because emulsified oils coat the tongue,
imparting "mouth-feel." Emulsions are useful tools in
industries which directly impact many aspects of society.
Experiment
Aim: - To compare the emulsification power of detergent
Materials required:-

 Emulsifier used: - Detergent: -surf excel, Ariel, Tide,

fena, wheel, rin.
 Oil used: - seasam oil, mustard oil, desi ghee, butter,
petrol almond oil.
 Water
 Stopwatch
 Test tube, test tube stand
 Small measuring cylinder

Procedure
 In a test-tube take 5 ml of oil and water
 Add 5 to 6 drops of emulsifying Agent solution
 Shake it well (10-12 time for uniformity) and start the
stopwatch
 Stop the stopwatch after the separation of oil in water
become Static and note the time of separation
 Repeat the process for other oils.
OBSERVATIONS:-

Emulsio SURF WHEE

TIDE RIN FENA ARIEL
n type EXCEL L
Almond
0:40 0:58 1:41 1:04 0:47 1:10
oil
Mustard
0:14 1:37 2:19 0:56 2:12 3:31
Oil
Sesam
0:29 1:34 2:02 0:37 1:01 0:19

Ghee
0:28 0:47 3:32 0:51 0:56 1:18

Butter
0:32 0:39 1:00 0:35 0:37 0:42

Petrol
0:12 0:25 1:46 0:23 0:24 0:15
Precaution
 Avoid the mixing of emulsifying agents.
 Test should be perform at room temperature
 Accuracy of the stopwatch should be maintained
Result
Among all the detergent which we tested with different oil
samples “TIDE” was found to have the best emulsifying
power therefore it is best suited for washing.

Biblography

1. NCERT CLASS 12 PHYSICS TEXTBOOK

2. www.google.co.in
3. www.wikipedia.com
4. www.yahoo.co.in