ABSTRACT
The action of surfactant adsorption at interfaces and aggregation in bulk solutions is central to many processes, among them biological, pharmaceutical, and industrial. A frequently cited biological example is the case of natural surfactants in the lungs that keep the alveoli from collapsing; furthermore, cells themselves are encased in a surfactant bilayer. In industrial processes, surfactants are key additives for oil recovery and pharmaceuticals and for use as dispersants for mineral recovery and engineering oils, as vesicles for drug delivery, as foams, and as surface coatings, among countless other examples. Due to the wide structural variety of surfactants and different interfaces of interest, it is not surprising that the physicochemical characterization of surfactants remains at the forefront of research.
