The goal of this project is to demonstrate the feasibility of using renewable plant-based materials to derive biodegradable, environmentally benign, non-toxic surfactants, to replace the chemically synthesized surfactants in use today. Surfactants are a unique class of chemical products that are used in large quantities for a wide variety of detergents, household cleaning products, personal care products and industrial applications. There is growing concern regarding the impact of chemical surfactants on human health and the environment due to their direct toxicity, and their impact on environmental processes and the behavior of other contaminants. Natures Secret Solutions will focus its research on a plant that it has shown to be more effective than todays commercial surfactants in preliminary studies. We will begin by processing the plant and preparing extract for evaluation and testing. The active molecule(s) responsible for the surfactant properties will then be separated. Both the active molecule(s) and whole extract will be studied and tested under a variety of environmental conditions to determine their effectiveness and confirm that the active ingredients are not toxic. By the completion of Phase I, Natures Secret Solutions will have developed a scalable methodology to isolate surfactants from the rest of the soluble plant and will have separated the most effective surfactant(s). Following additional evaluation, testing and scale up experiments in Phase II, we will work to get our new green surfactant(s) into existing products and co-develop new products and applications with commercial partners. Long-term goals include creating demand for the production of a new non-food specialty crop and the replacement of current synthetic chemical surfactants in industrial and household products.
