Superior wetting branched nonionic surfactants from α ‐olefin dimers upgrading via tandem hydroformylation‐hydrogenation

Abstract

α ‐olefin dimers, derived from the Fischer–Tropsch synthesis, are attractive feedstocks for value‐added chemicals. Nonionic surfactants possess a high chemical stability, rendering them economically significant. However, an efficient process for upgrading α ‐olefin dimers into nonionic surfactants remains unexplored. Herein, we reported an integrated catalytic strategy employing a binary catalyst system, which achieved 100% conversion of α ‐olefin dimers via a tandem hydroformylation‐hydrogenation. This process afforded branched alcohols with up to 91.1% regioselectivity, which underwent ethoxylation to yield a novel series of branched nonionic surfactants (CnEO9). Compared to linear surfactants (AEO9), the synthesized surfactants exhibited lower surface tension and superior wetting on various solid surfaces. Notably, C13EO9 showed a contact angle of 14° on copper versus 32° for AEO9 at 1 s. Moreover, C13EO9 demonstrated low‐foaming properties and effective emulsification, contributing to a hard surface cleaning efficiency of 98%. This study provides a general design strategy for developing potential branched surfactants from low‐cost α ‐olefins.