Synthesis and characterization of novel amphiphiles containing amino acid and carbohydrate

Abstract Amphiphiles composed of two different natural renewable raw materials, amino acid and carbohydrate (chitin), were synthesized, and their colloidal properties were studied. N‐Higher acylated glutamic and aspartic acid were used as amino acid raw materials. Chitin monomer (N‐acetyl glucosamine) and dimer (N,N′‐diacetylchitobiose) were employed as the carbohydrate hydrophilic moiety in the amphiphiles. These surfactants showed a surface tension in the range of 30–36 mN/m at their critical micelle concentration. In the study of colloidal properties, such as surface tension, emulsification, and foaming, the surfactants containing the monosaccharide hydrophilic group showed much better results than those with disaccharide. Biodegradation measurements showed that the tested surfactants are biodegraded by environmental microorganisms to 57–73% of the initial levels in 14 d. Their biodegradation extent depended on neither the saccharide structure nor the kind of amino acid.