Application of biosurfactant An6 in diesel solubilization
The effect of biosurfactant An6, at different concentrations (from
0.05 to 2 g/L), on the apparent aqueous solubility of diesel was
measured by the test tube solubilization assays and compared with
those of Tween 80 and SDS. As seen in Fig. 3, biosurfactant An6
exhibited a solubilization capacity in a concentration-dependent
manner. Indeed, the solubilization rate of diesel increased linearly
with the increase in the concentration up to 0.5 g/L and then
remained nearly constant. At the same concentrations, the solubility
enhancement was notably greater for the biosurfactant An6
than those of the synthetic surfactants. This statement is also
supported by the specific activity, designed as the volume of diesel
solubilized per mg emulsifier, which measures the effectiveness of
surfactant in solubilizing hydrocarbon in water solution. At 1 g/L,
the specific activity was found to be 14.03, 11.84 and 12.43 mL of
diesel per mg of biosurfactant An6, SDS and Tween 80, respectively.