Home Cosmetic Science Talk Formulating Hair Hair conditioner Separates.

  • Hair conditioner Separates.

    Posted by Kioko on July 24, 2018 at 7:43 am

    This formula..
    Cetyl alcohol 2%
    Cetrimde 1%
    Oils 2%
    Glycerine 3%
    Glyceryl stearate 4%
    Polysorbate 0.3%
    Dimethicone 1%

    It did not thicken up and after 24 hours it separated. Should i up the polysorbate or will an addition of stearic acid keep the emulsion tog? I cannot get BTMS in my area. Looking to make a rinse out conditioner that gives good slip for ethnic hair.

    gunther replied 5 years, 8 months ago 6 Members · 9 Replies
  • 9 Replies
  • microformulation

    Member
    July 24, 2018 at 12:43 pm
    I would wager that your emulsification system is weak and I would readdress that aspect of the Formulation first and foremost.
    Behentrimonium Methosulfate is the primary emulsifier in BTMS-50 and you have to avoid it since you can’t get the raw material (although I wager you could get a small amount online and get it shipped, medium pricey but worthwhile). So, you drop the primary emulsifier and basically say. “Eh, I didn’t need it anyway” without replacing it. 
    You may see better slip with Cetearyl alcohol than you might with Cetyl alcohol. Glyceryl Stearate is a low HLB emulsifier and not likely to work alone. I doubt the additional Polysorbate (20 or 80?) will augment the Glyceryl stearate sufficiently.

    There is a breakdown of the HLB values. (an older method, works with certain emulsifiers, not the Holy Grail). If you notice, to use Glyceryl Stearate and Polysorbate 20, you would need to use the Polysorbate 20 at a much higher level where it would have adverse effects on the final feel.
    Even this step just assures a stable emulsion. You would still need to do some trial and error to address the conditioning and stability of the Centrimonium. There are also other raw materials I am also sure that you could get that you could consider as well.
    Taking this qualified approach to your Formulation demonstrates why you should make an effort to learn the fundamentals, details too basic but necessary to be appropriately addressed in a Forum such as this. LEARN THE BASICS.
    Here is a great document on the HLB System. It works well when it is used in the correct application and with the proper emulsifiers. Even so, it is a predictor of stability but must be backed up with actual lab bench time.

  • belassi

    Member
    July 24, 2018 at 1:38 pm

    Going to be a waste of time. I went down this road because I can’t obtain BTMS and in the end I gave up.

  • microformulation

    Member
    July 24, 2018 at 2:08 pm
    And there you go, you can save the 12 hours of lab time to learn the same thing.
    You may want to see if you can get Emulsence HC from Inolex, although I imagine that will be problematic as well.
  • gunther

    Member
    July 24, 2018 at 4:55 pm

    Yes, get the BTMS
    it’s crucial
    You can make great 1 ingrdient conditioners just with BTMS (well, 3 ingredients with water and preservative)

    BTW Do you guys think I’m being taken advantage of?
    Local source is charging me $24 per Kg of BTMS-50, isn’t that excessive?
    Did they just realize that pricey or not, you can’t easily replace BTMS?

    At least that includes an invoice with 12% VAT that I can deduct of taxes on invoices that I write.

  • bill_toge

    Member
    July 25, 2018 at 10:07 pm

    also, if you’re using glyceryl stearate SE, that contains sodium stearate, which is anionic and therefore incompatible with the cetrimide

  • chemicalmatt

    Member
    July 27, 2018 at 4:07 pm

    Kioko: cetrimonium chloride is a perfectly fine cationic emulsifier, you wont need to spend money on that behenyl quat.  Assuming you are using the standard 30% active CETAC, increase this to 2.0%, then reverse the concentration ratio of cetyl alcohol: glyceryl stearate from 2:4 to 4:2. Should you need to thicken it, add sodium chloride (in solution!) incrementally, no more than 0.15% solid basis.

  • Kioko

    Member
    July 28, 2018 at 12:34 pm

    Thank you for the advise guys. @chemicalmatt I will do this and advise. 

  • Kioko

    Member
    August 1, 2018 at 3:45 pm

    @chemicalmatt this worked so well. 48 hours and the emulsion is still stable. Keeping a keen eye as I work on improving the texture. 

  • gunther

    Member
    August 1, 2018 at 4:14 pm

    Great @chemicalmatt I didn’t even know that Cetrimonium was an emulsifier too.
    I always thought it was just a detangler.

    @Kioko would you mind posting what was your formula like?

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