Extension of the taylor equation for Oil-Water- Surfactant system and investigating the impact of surfactant concentration over the quality of emulsion

摘要

Emulsions stand among the most important multiphase fluids, exhibiting various complicated phenomenon. To understand the process of emulsification, the Taylor equation has been extended to incorporate the parameters that depend on molecular mass of oil and their contents and the amount of surfactant added. To test the validity of the proposed equations, four well-defined short chain (n-hexane, n-heptane, n-decane, and kerosene) oils were emulsified in water and the results were compared with the experimental ones. It has been concluded that the extended Taylor equation worked well, even in the presence of surfactant. The quality of the emulsion defined and discussed in terms of size and number of droplets was best near CMC of the surfactant used. A relationship has also been derived between CMC of surfactant and its distribution coefficient, which allows the exact value of one parameter to be determined if other is known.