Impact of Surfactants on the Performance of “Green Additives” as Calcium Carbonate Inhibitors for Aqueous Systems

Abstract

Abstract The inhibition of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) precipitation by “green” additives has been examined in aqueous solution. It has been found that additive performance as CaCO3 inhibitor depends upon additive architecture. The influence of surfactants containing different functional group has also been investigated. Results on the evaluation of surfactants suggest that compared to carboxyl group containing additives, surfactants are ineffective CaCO3 inhibitors. Performance data on the impact of cationic surfactant (e. g., cetyltrimethyl ammonium chloride, CTAC) suggest that CTAC exhibits an antagonistic effect on the performance of polymers. The antagonistic behavior shown by CTAC on the performance of additives has been explained in terms of cationic – anionic interactions. SEM study shows that presence of low concentration of additive exhibits marked influence on the morphology of CaCO3 crystals formed in presence of additives.