The molecular areas and the interfacial tension behavior of ten nonionic surfactants, i.e., Span 20 and Tween 20, 40, 60. 80, 21, 61, 81, 65, & 85 are tested to assay their effects on the wetting and liquid retention properties of hydrophilic and hydrophobic fibrous materials. The molecular areas at water/air interface are derived from Gibbs’adsorption equations. The following conclusions are drawn from the results: 1) Span 20 is efficient in lowering the interfacial tension and effective in adsorption at the water/air interface, resulting in the low interfacial tension at critical micelle concentration (${gamma}$$_{CMC}$) and a small molecular area($omega$), 2) when the hydrophiles of the surfactants are constant, $omega$’s increase as hydrophobe carbon numbers of the surfactants increase, 3) when the hydrophobes are constant, ${gamma}$$_{CMC}$’s and $omega$’s increase as the hydrophile ethylene oxide units increase, indicating effectiveness and efficiency is parallel in this case, 4) the ethylene oxide unit length as a hydrophile has greater influence on u than the hydrophobe chain length.han the hydrophobe chain length.gth.