Fatty Alcohols and Tertiary Amines

Oleochemicals, such as fatty alcohols, fatty acids, glycerin, fatty amines, and surfactants, which are manufactured from natural fats and oils, form the foundation of Kao’s various businesses and at the same time play an important role in building a sustainable society.

Fatty alcohols, one of the main raw materials for surfactants, are manufactured using a numerous catalysts developed independently by Kao. In developing catalysts, we make full use of various electron microscopes, surface analyzers, crystal structure analyzers, etc. In addition, we conduct joint research with universities, research institutes, and catalyst manufacturers in Japan and abroad, and use materials informatics and computational chemistry.

There are many types of surfactants made from fatty alcohols and their production methods vary, but the technology for producing tertiary amines is based on Kao’s proprietary catalyst technology. By introducing dimethylamine into higher alcohols in the presence of this catalyst, the desired tertiary amine can be obtained in an extremely short time with high selectivity. The obtained tertiary amines are used as raw materials for various household products such as hair rinse, dishwashing detergents, and disinfectants.

Thus, oleochemicals occupy an important position in Kao, and are supported by Kao’s catalyst development technology, and deliver products that outperform the global competition.