Adsorption of surfactant mixtures on solids is of considerable theoretical and practical importance. In this study, cooperative adsorption of surfactant
mixtures of nonyl phenol ethoxylated decyl ether (NP-10) and n-dodecyl-β-D-maltoside (DM) on silica and alumina has been investigated
as a function of the distribution of individual surfactants between solution and solid surface. In the mixed adsorption process, DM is identified
to be the “active” adsorbing component and NP is the “passive” co-adsorbing one in the process of adsorption on alumina, while their roles are
reversed on silica. A modified model has been proposed to quantify the adsorption behavior of surfactant mixtures and to obtain information in
terms of aggregation number and standard free energy for surface aggregation. This model is the first model applied to the aggregation of the
surfactant mixture at the solid/solution interfaces.
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