The influence of variables such as adsorption temperature, polar chain length, and nature of functional groups on the adsorption, from aqueous solutions, of various surfactants (TX-114, TX-100, TX-165, TX-305, NP1P4E, NP4P1E, NP4S, NP10S, and NP25S) has been investigated. Several nonporous solids, including various samples of quartz, QA (5.1 m(2) g(-1)), QB (5.5 m(2) g(-1)), and QC (4.0 m(2) g(-1)), kaolin (19.3 m(2) g(-1)), and dolomite (0.3 m(2) g(-1)), were studied. Conformational changes of adsorbed surfactant molecules on QC quartz, when the oxyethylenic length of Tritons increases, have been detected. For all the other solid samples the surface is not completely covered by Tritons. On quartz, the surfactants are adsorbed by hydrogen bonds between the surfactant’s ether groups and the silanol groups of the solid surface. These hydroxyl groups must be free and sufficiently separated from other hydroxyls of the solid surface. When the number of propoxy groups increases (from NP1P4E to NP4P1E) the adsorbed amount of surfactant on the solid studied decreases. Anionic surfactants are adsorbed on quartz in lower amounts than the corresponding nonionic surfactants. However, the adsorbed amounts of Tritons and sulfated Tritons on kaolin are similar, probably due to the positive charges on the edges of this material.