Institutional development · Research, innovation and assessment · Australia
University of Sydney-led team forms microemulsions using ionic liquids instead of surfactants
An international group led by the University of Sydney has produced microemulsions without conventional surfactants by using ionic liquids, according to Australia's national nuclear science organisation.
Why it matters: Researchers developing pharmaceutical and food-additive formulations have a reported alternative method that, ANSTO says, could lessen reliance on surfactants.
ANSTO, the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, said an international group under University of Sydney leadership has developed a method for producing microemulsions that does not depend on conventional surfactants.
According to ANSTO, the team used ionic liquids to build surfactant-like behaviour directly into the solvent, and the method was confirmed partly with neutron and X-ray scattering.
ANSTO said conventional surfactants tend to be toxic and difficult to remove from finished products, and that lowering the need for them could make production more sustainable.
The organisation pointed to potential relevance for medicines and food additives.
Editor’s view
Scott James, Research and Innovation Editor
Formulation researchers in pharmaceuticals and food additives are those directly affected: if the ionic-liquid method proves robust, ANSTO says microemulsions could be made with less use of surfactants that are frequently toxic and hard to strip from products.
