Where do nonylphenol and nonylphenol ethoxylates come from?
Nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs) are a group of synthetic chemicals produced for their surfactant properties; that is, their ability to make liquids spread out on flat surfaces rather than collecting in droplets, and their ability to bind non-mixable substances such as oil and water. NPEs are made from nonylphenol (NP), also a synthetic chemical, by adding as many as one hundred ethoxylate groups. Ethoxylate groups are made of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. Most of the commonly used NPEs have six to twelve ethoxylate groups. NPEs are used in a wide variety of residential and commercial cleaning products, including detergents, shampoos, and surface cleaners. They are also used in pesticides and spermicides. Industry uses NPEs as detergents, emulsifiers, wetting agents, and dispersing agents in textile processing. Other industrial uses are in paint and protective coatings, the manufacturing of plastics, pulp and paper production, oil extraction and petroleum production, metal processing, lea
