To study the influence of the head group in the properties of the mixed monolayers adsorbed at the air-water interface, the surface tension and surface potential of binary mixtures of surfactant have been determined as a function of the surfactant composition. Experiments were carried out with anionic-zwitterionic sodium dodecyl sulfate and dodecyl dimethyl ammoniopropane sulfonate (SDS/DDPS), and cationic-zwitterionic dodecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide and dodecyl dimethyl ammoniopropane sulfonate (DTAB/DDPS), and dodecyl trimethylammonium bromide and tetradecyl dimethyl ammoniopropane sulfonate (DTAB/TDPS). It was shown that mixed monolayers of cationic-zwitterionic surfactant exhibit small negative deviations of ideal behavior, whereas for SDS/DDPS monolayers show strong negative deviation from the ideality. Deviations of ideal behavior are interpreted by regular solution theory. The surface potential values agree very well with the concentration of the ionic component at the interface. The dynamic surface tension values show that the adsorption kinetics on the interface is a diffusion-controlled process. In monolayers with significant deviation of the ideal behavior, anionic-zwitterionic, there is some evidence of intermolecular attractions after diffusion of both surfactants at the interface. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.