Potential commercial applications of microbial surfactants

Surfactants are surface-active compounds capable of reducing surface and in terfacial tension at the interfaces between liquids, solids and gases, ther eby allowing them to mix or disperse readily as emulsions in water or other liquids. The enormous market demand for surfactants is currently met by nu merous synthetic, mainly petroleum-based, chemical surfactants. These compo unds are usuary toxic to the environment and non-biodegradable. They may bi o-accumulate and their production, processes and by-products can be environ mentally hazardous. Tightening environmental regulations and increasing awa reness for the need to protect the ecosystem have effectively resulted in a n increasing interest in biosurfactants as possible alternatives to chemica l surfactants. Biosurfactants are amphiphilic compounds of microbial origin with considerable potential in commercial applications within various indu stries. They have advantages over their chemical counterparts in biodegrada bility and effectiveness at extreme temperature or pH and in having lower t oxicity. Biosurfactants are beginning to acquire a status as potential perf ormance-effective molecules in various fields. At present biosurfactants ar e mainly used in studies on enhanced oil recovery and hydrocarbon bioremedi ation. The solubilization and emulsification of toxic chemicals by biosurfa ctants have also been reported. Biosurfactants also have potential applicat ions in agriculture, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, detergents, personal care products, food processing, textile manufacturing, laundry supplies, metal t reatment and processing, pulp and paper processing and paint industries. Th eir uses and potential commercial applications in these fields are reviewed .