A substance used to enhance the cleansing action of water. A detergent is an emulsifier, which penetrates and breaks up the oil film that binds dirt particles, and a wetting agent, which helps them to float off. Emulsifier molecules have an oillike nonpolar portion which is drawn into the oil, and a polar group that is water-soluble; by bridging the oilwater interface, they break the oil into dispersible droplets (emulsion). As a surfactant, a detergent decreases the surface tension of water and helps it penetrate soil.

Soap, the sodium salt of long-chain acids, was the principal detergent until superseded in 1954 by synthetic detergents (syndets) which, unlike soap, do not form insoluble products with the calcium in hard water. Most syndets are of the anionic type, that is, sodium salts of alkyl sulfates or sulfonates. Alkyl benzene sulfonates (ABS) with branched carbon chains were found to persist in wastewater and have been replaced by linear alkyl benzene sulfonates (LAS), which are biodegradable by bacterial action. Anionic detergents are best for water-absorbing fibers such as cotton, wool, and silk. Nonionic detergents are polyethers made by combining ethylene oxide with a 12-carbon lauryl alcohol. They are used for water-repelling “permanent press” fabrics, and their low-foaming property is desirable for automatic washers. Cationic syndets are quarternary base compounds. They are more expensive, but some are germicidal; some are used as fabric softeners and as good metal cleaners.

Detergents must contain alkaline “builders” to bind dissolved metal ions and support emulsification. Sodium pyrophosphate or polyphosphate were preferred because of low cost and high cleansing effectiveness. However, when discharged with laundry wastewater, these compounds supply nutrient to phosphate-deficient lakes and streams and thus lead to eutrophication, and their use is now banned by law. Less harmful, but less effective, builders such as sodium carbonate are now widely used in detergents.

Many additives are used in detergents to provide scent, brightening (usually through fluorescent action), or bleaching action. Biodegradability is essential for detergents; it ensures that components of detergents will be broken down by bacterial action before undesirable aftereffects can occur. Nonbiodegradable detergents can prevent effective bacterial action in septic tanks and sewage treatment plants, and can cause undesirable persistent foaming in rivers.

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