ABSTRACT
I. INTRODUCTION Until relatively recently, hydrolytic instability of a surfactant was seen as a problem. For this reason a weak linkage in the surfactant molecule was avoided. Among the surfactant workhorses: anionics such as alkylbenzenesulfonates and alkyl sulfates, nonionics such as alcohol ethoxylates and alkylphenol ethoxylates, and cationics such as alkyl quats and dialkyl quats; only alkyl sulfates are not chemically stable under normal conditions. Through the years the susceptibility of alkyl sulfates to acid-catalyzed hydrolysis has been seen as a considerable problem, particularly well known for the most prominent member of the class, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). The general attitude has been that weak bonds in a surfactant may cause handling and storage problems and should therefore be avoided.
