PEEBLESHS <peebleshs at aol.com> wrote in message
news:19991005091945.21801.00001010 at ng-fg1.aol.com...
> I am a sixth year pupil at Peebles High School in Scotland. For my sixth
year
> studies Biology project I am investigating the effects of various
germicides on
> bacterial growth. I am using E. coli. Staph. Albus and Micrococcus
Luteus. I
> have chosen a phenolic containing disinfectant, hydrogen peroxide, bleach
and
> two surfactants - Dettox and a washing up liquid - as my germicide. I
would
> like more information about how these work, particularly surfactants.
What
> does anionic, nonionic, cationic and amphoteric mean when applied to
> surfactants? Are there any other types of surfactant?
> I am going to choose the most effective germicide and use different
> concentrations against the same bacteria to find the most effective.
See if your library has a book called "Disinfection and Sterilisation" by
Sykes. It's probably a bit old by now (unless they've updated it), but
describes the working of most of the types of disinfectants you mention.
Lesley Robertson
