ANALYSIS OF ETHOXYLATED NONYLPHENOL SURFACTANTS BY HIGH-PERFORMANCE SIZE-EXCLUSION CHROMATOGRAPHY (HPSEC)

Since Size Exclusion Chromatography does not provide a complete oligom er resolution, it has not been generally considered as a choice method for analyzing ethoxylated surfactant. However, this situation might b e changing. In effect, the use of new column technology together with non aqueous carrier solvent, and some operational optimization, can re sult in fairly good distribution data on the number of ethylene oxide groups per molecule (EON). It is shown that HPSEC provides an excellen t EON average estimate over a wider and higher EON range than the the up-to-date HPLC techniques.