title: Separation of phenols from aqueous micellar solutions by cloud point extraction.
abstract: The cloud point technique was used to recover phenol, 4-methylphenol, and 4-nitrophenol from aqueous solutions using oxyethylated methyl dodecanoates as nonionic surfactants. Oxyethylated methyl dodecanoates are convenient nonionic surfactants for such separations. Their cloud points can be easily modified by a change in surfactant hydrophilicity or by the addition of a second nonionic surfactant and/or an electrolyte. The use of the hydrophile lipophile balance is preferred to model the cloud point of oxyethylated methyl dodecanoates and their mixtures with other surfactants. The composition of the surfactant-rich phase depends on electrolyte type and the overheating. The phase can contain only 5-15% of water. Recovery of phenols changes in the order 4-nitrophenol >4-methylphenol > phenol and is increased in the presence of sodium chloride. The presence of salting-out electrolytes is preferred both to decrease the cloud point and to increase the efficiency of extraction.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Chemical Technology and Engineering, Poznan University of Technology, Pl. M. Sklodowskiej-Curie 2, 60-965 Poznan, Poland.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Materna
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Szymanowski