Parameters needed:
(1) average oil globule diameter in cm
(2) volume of oil to be emulsified in mL
(3) molecular weight of the surfactant in grams
(4) cross-sectional area of the surfactant in square cm or square Angstrom units
where:
• 1 Angstrom unit = 10^(-8) cm = 10^(-10) m
• Avogadro's number = 6.022 * 10(^23)
radius of each oil globule =
= (diameter in cm) / 2
volume of each oil globule in cubic cm (mL) =
= volume of a sphere =
= 4 / 3 *
π * ((radius in cm)^3)
number of oil globules per mL oil =
= 1 mL / (volume of each oil globule in mL)
surface area of each oil globule in square cm =
= surface area of a sphere =
= 4 * π * ((radius of oil globule in cm)^2)
total surface area of oil globules in 1 mL of oil in square cm =
= (number of oil globules per mL oil) * (surface of each oil globule in square cm)
number of surfactant molecules absorbed per mL oil =
= (total surface area of oil globules in 1 mL oil in square cm) / (cross-sectional area of surfactant in square cm)
number of moles of surfactant required per mL oil =
= (number of surfactant molecules absorbed per mL oil) / (Avogadro's number)
grams of surfactant required per mL oil =
= (number of moles of surfactant required) * (molecular weight in grams)
grams of surfactant required for final volume of oil =
= (number of mL of oil) * (grams of surfactant required per mL oil)
