Cetrimonium chloride, or cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAC), is a topical antiseptic and surfactant. Long-chain quaternary ammonium surfactants, such as cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAC), are generally combined with long-chain fatty alcohols, such as stearyl alcohols, in formulations of hair conditioners and shampoos.What is cetrimonium chloride? at naturallycurly.com"The cooling process effect on the bilayer phase state of the CTAC/cetearyl alcohol/water surfactant gel", Colloids and Surfaces A 597 (2020) 1248212 The cationic surfactant concentration in conditioners is generally of the order of 1–2% and the alcohol concentrations are usually equal to or greater than those of the cationic surfactants. The ternary system, surfactant/fatty alcohol/water, leads to a lamellar structure forming a percolated network giving rise to a gel.
See also Behentrimonium chloride – an C25 structural analogue Cetrimonium bromide – the corresponding bromide salt
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