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Clays and emulsion pH
Hello guys,
I’ve been working on a clay pomade and I am planning to ditch guar gum as my water gelling agent because it is too sticky. I want to replace it with sodium carbomer. I read that sodium carbomer is not effective at a pH lower than 5,5. I am using only kaolin and Illite(green) clay, will these clays lower the pH of the product? And if so, can I increase the pH using bentonite?
I am looking forward for your replies.
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6 Replies
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You can use carbomers designed for low pH. The aqua or the smart lines from Lubrizol will work at that pH.
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bentonite is alkaline, so possibly could be used.
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I find it really hard to believe that clays can influence pH levels without dissolving. But I give it a try with and without bentonite and see how I like the finish.
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@ultraduy You are correct they cannot unless dissolved.Why don’t you use Veegum and/or xanthan gum?
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The gums were too sticky for me and made the application horrible. So I switched to carbomer. So we can say that kaolin and bentonite do not have influence on the pH of the emulsion, because they are water insoluble?
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@ultraduy they can’t be dissolved in water per se, but they are miscible with water; depending on where it comes from, bentonite is neutral to alkaline when mixed with water
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