I think the idea of the surfactant is to reduce the surface tension, and consequently the water vapor bubble size when the coolant boils (does anybody remember 2T/r from their school physics lessons?).
If you just want the surfactant effect, perhaps a few drops of detergent would work equally as well 
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I often say that when you can measure what you are speaking about, and express it in numbers, you know something about it; but when you cannot measure it, when you cannot express it in numbers, your knowledge is of a meagre and unsatisfactory kind; it may be the beginning of knowledge, but you have scarcely in your thoughts advanced to the state of Science, whatever the matter may be.
Sir William Thomson
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