Do surfactants and or detergents have a Ph by themselves?
i see few acid rinses and citrus solvents with detergents or surfactants in them. can someone explain this?
As Larry said, "Yes.", to the first question. But they aren't all the same pH, so it's not that simple, in terms of bunching them all into one group.
Most "acid rinses" that I've seen are browning treatments that are used as a rinse. In other words, they are browning treatments with a different label on them.
The idea of a "rinse", if you think about it, is to flush a carpet efficiently. That being the case, reduced surface tension is a plus. Water alone, unless it's been modified (such as RO, DI, etc.) has a surface tension that isn't as efficient as it can be at flowing around and through things. (Remember the elementary school demonstration of floating a needle on the surface of a glass of water...?)
So, a good rinse... one that's actually designed as one and not a browning treatment with a different label on it, will have a bit of surfactant in it. It's a miniscule amount, in reality, but that's all it takes, really. And such a small amount is insignificant, in terms of resoiling.
... and, there are surfactants that don't dry "sticky", but dry to a crystalline formation... a "powder". They're in minute amounts, too, because having a white powder visible after the carpet dries is a "No- no", as well.
Regarding citrus products, they are more pH sensitive, in terms of being included in a blend. In other words, if the pH is too high, they won't stay mixed... they fall out of suspension. So they are rarely included in a product that has a high pH... unless whoever designed the formula took pains to prevent this from happening, which is pretty rare...
I don't make, or "repackage", actually, a pure citrus product. It's a pain to rinse out of carpet, because it's an "oil", basically, and oil repels water. So, it looks like I fit into one of the "few" sources for a citrus product that does contain surfactants, by your observation above. Not just any surfactant works with terpenes, by the way. One of my "favorite" surfactants for cleaning products actually is very poor, in terms of emulsifying them.
Hope that helps some...