Soil water solutes reduce the critical micelle concentration of quaternary ammonium compounds

9Citations
Citations of this article
17Readers
Mendeley users who have this article in their library.

This article is free to access.

Abstract

Quaternary alkyl ammonium compounds (QAACs) are produced in large quantities for use as surfactants and disinfectants and also found in soils, sediments, and surface waters, where they are potentially involved in the selection of antibiotic resistance genes. Micelle formation influences fate and effects of QAACs. The critical micelle concentration (CMC) of six homologs of benzylalkylammonium chlorides (BAC) was determined in deionized water, 0.01 M CaCl2 solution, and aqueous soil extracts, using both spectrofluorometric and tensiometric methods. Additionally, eight organic model compounds were employed at concentrations of 15 mg C L−1 as background solutes in order to test the effect of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) on CMCs. Results found CMCs decreased with an increasing length of the alkyl chain from 188 mM for BAC-C8 to 0.1 mM for BAC-C18. Both methods yielded similar results for measurements in water and CaCl2 solution; however, the spectrofluorescence method did not work for soil extracts due to fluorescence quenching phenomena. In soil extracts, CMCs of BAC-C12 were reduced below 3.7 mM, while the CMC reduction in soil extracts was less pronounced for BAC-C16. Besides ionic strength, molecular structures of BACs and dissolved organic compounds also affected the CMC. The number of carboxyl groups and small molecular weights of the DOC model compounds reduced the CMCs of BAC-C12 and BAC-C16 at pH 6. This study highlights that CMCs can be surpassed in soil solution, pore waters of sediments, or other natural waters even at (small) concentrations of QAACs typically found in the environment.

References Powered by Scopus

Environmental Effects on Vibronic Band Intensities in Pyrene Monomer Fluorescence and Their Application in Studies of Micellar Systems

3560Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

On the determination of the critical micelle concentration by the pyrene 1:3 ratio method

749Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Use of surfactants for the remediation of contaminated soils: A review

686Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Cited by Powered by Scopus

Quaternary ammonium compounds of emerging concern: Classification, occurrence, fate, toxicity and antimicrobial resistance

116Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

An Investigation of Thermal Air Degradation and Pyrolysis of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances and Aqueous Film-Forming Foams in Soil

61Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Dissolved organic matter evolution and straw decomposition rate characterization under different water and fertilizer conditions based on three-dimensional fluorescence spectrum and deep learning

21Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Register to see more suggestions

Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.

Already have an account?

Cite

CITATION STYLE

APA

Mulder, I., Schmittdiel, M., Frei, H., Hofmann, L., Gerbig, D., & Siemens, J. (2020). Soil water solutes reduce the critical micelle concentration of quaternary ammonium compounds. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 27(36), 45311–45323. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-10188-2

Readers over time

‘20‘21‘22‘23‘2402468

Readers' Seniority

Tooltip

PhD / Post grad / Masters / Doc 4

57%

Researcher 2

29%

Lecturer / Post doc 1

14%

Readers' Discipline

Tooltip

Chemistry 2

25%

Physics and Astronomy 2

25%

Engineering 2

25%

Agricultural and Biological Sciences 2

25%

Save time finding and organizing research with Mendeley

Sign up for free
0