The strong interaction between polyamines and anionic surfactants results in pronounced adsorption at
the air–water interface and can lead to the formation of layered surface structures. The transition from
monolayer adsorption to more complex surface structures depends upon solution pH, and the structure
and molecular weight of the polyamine.
The effects of manipulating the polyamine molecular weight and structure on the adsorption of the
anionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulphate at the air–water interface are investigated using neutron
reflectivity and surface tension, for the biogenic amines putrescine, spermidine and spermine.
The results show how changing the number of amine groups and the spacing between the amine
groups impacts upon the surface adsorption. At lower pH, 3–7, and for the higher molecular weight polyamines, spermidine and spermine, ordered multilayer structures are observed. For putrescine at all pH
and for spermidine and spermine at high pH, monolayer adsorption with enhanced surfactant adsorption
compared to the pure surfactant is observed. The data for the biogenic amines, when compared with similar data for the polyamines ethylenediamine, diethylenetriamine and triethylenetetramine, indicate that
the spacing between amines groups is more optimal for the formation of ordered surface multilayer
structures.
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