Alpha Olefin Sulfonate Surfactant

Alpha olefin sulfonate possesses many positive properties that make it useful across a wide range of cleaning and personal care formulations:

• Superb Foaming – AOS creates a rich, dense, and stable lather that consumers love in products like shampoos, conditioners, hand soaps, shower gels, and more. The luxurious foam helps lift away oils and dirt from surfaces.
• Excellent Cleaning Ability – AOS’s dual hydrophilic and hydrophobic chemical structure allows it to effectively cut through grease and solubilize oils. When blended into cleaning products, it significantly boosts cleaning performance.
• Low Skin/Eye Irritation – AOS is among the mildest anionic surfactants available. Even at high-use concentrations, it demonstrates very low ocular and dermal irritation. This makes AOS ideal for products for sensitive skin.
• Hard Water Tolerance – Unlike some anionic surfactants, AOS and sodium laureth sulfate surfactants retain its foaming capacity and cleaning power even in hard water conditions. The sulfonate group gives it exceptional water hardness tolerance.
• Readily Biodegradable – AOS breaks down readily through microbial digestion in the environment. Most AOS surfactants exhibit biodegradability of over 80%, meeting eco-standards.

With this optimal balance of foaming, cleaning ability, mildness, hard water tolerance, and biodegradability, AOS is a top-choice ingredient for high-performing, sustainable cleaning products.

Thanks to its gentle yet powerful cleaning action, Alpha Olefin Sulfonate is used in numerous consumer and industrial applications:

• Shampoos & Hair Care – The mild foaming ability of AOS makes it an ideal ingredient in hair cleansing products like shampoos, conditioners, and 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioners. It rinses cleanly without drying out hair.
• Body Washes & Soaps – AOS is a common ingredient in liquid hand soaps, shower and bath gels, facial cleansers, and bar soaps because of its luxurious lather and thorough yet gentle cleansing properties.
• Household Cleaners – All-purpose cleaners, laundry detergents, dishwashing liquids, bathroom cleaners, and more rely on AOS to dissolve grease, oils, and dirt without being overly harsh.
• Industrial Cleaners – Manufacturing facility and maintenance degreasers use AOS to cut through tough, oily industrial soils. AOS is also found in textile processing applications.
• Pet Shampoos – Pet shampoo formulations take advantage of the mildness and dense foam created by AOS to gently cleanse pet fur. AOS rinses out easily without drying the pet’s skin and coat.
• Soluble Oils/Lubricants – Since AOS effectively emulsifies oils, it works well as an additive in soluble cutting oils and lubricants that require mixing with water.
• Lime Soap Dispersant – AOS is also used in formulations to effectively disperse lime soap in cleaning products.
• Fire Fighting Foam – AOS is utilized in fire fighting foam formulations due to its excellent foaming characteristics.

The versatile properties of AOS allow it to deliver specialized benefits to each unique application.

AOS is considered an environmentally responsible surfactant:

• Biodegradable – With biodegradability percentages typically over 80%, AOS breaks down quickly and completely without forming toxic or bioaccumulative intermediates.
• Plant-Based Options – While some AOS is petroleum-derived, options based on plant-derived renewable olefins offer a more sustainable path forward. Expect bio-based AOS to grow.
• Gentle Processing – Modern AOS production processes utilize less harsh conditions, consuming less energy and resources compared to earlier synthetic methods.
• Low Toxicity – Studies show AOS exhibits no chronic aquatic toxicity. When disposed of properly, alpha olefin sulfonate poses little risk to marine life, even at low concentrations.

These eco-friendly attributes allow environmentally conscious companies to confidently formulate AOS into their sustainable cleaning products.

With its impressive balance of high performance, gentleness, and eco-friendly attributes, AOS is a versatile anionic surfactant that delivers mild yet potent cleaning power across diverse consumer and industrial applications. The unique chemical structure of AOS allows it to lower surface tension, enabling excellent grease-cutting ability, hard water tolerance, and luxurious foaming. AOS is biodegradable and gentle on skin. From shampoos to heavy-duty degreasers, AOS can provide the right solution. Get in touch with the experts at Polyventive for your premium AOS surfactant, which needs to be backed by technical guidance and responsive customer service.