ABSTRACT
Before the development of chemical-specific methods for the measurement of Alcohol ethoxylates (AE) in biodegradation studies and environmental samples, AE surfactants were determined by methods that measured the loss of a chemical or physical property of the parent molecule. Alcohol ethoxylate surfactants must be derivatized for UV and fluorescent detection. Gas chromatography coupled with various detection methods has been applied to environmental samples and is applicable to determination of AE. In the future, various mass spectrometry (MS) techniques including evaporative light scattering and fast atom bombardment will likely be increasingly used. The first comprehensive review of analytical procedures for the determination of nonionic surfactants in commercial products and in environmental samples was Nonionic Surfactants, edited by M. J. Schick (1967). Although several chemical-specific methods are described, most of the methods are for nonionic-type compounds in general.
