Investigation of process variable effects on palm kernelamidopropyl betaine production

Abstract Cocamidopropyl betaine is a coconut oil-based surfactant that is widely used in cosmetics and personal care products due to its milder and less irritating properties compared to conventional petroleum-based surfactants. Palm kernel oil can be used for the synthesis of betaine (palm kernel amidopropyl betaine), following the same route as for the synthesis with coconut oil via two reaction steps. However, there was little information on the optimal operating conditions for each process. The method for the production of betaine and its operating conditions were studied in order to obtain a compatible betaine product with better properties than those of the commercial product. The studied method and operating conditions allowed the production of low viscosity betaine with a higher surfactant content (31.55 wt%) than that of the commercial betaine products (25.10 wt%). In addition, other feedstocks such as coconut oil, split palm kernel oil and coconut oil-based fatty acid methyl ester were used in this study to produce betaine from low-cost production.