Preventing "Blooming" ("Sweating") in Anhydrous Products ⁉️
emma1985
Member
Hello,
I am working on a cleansing balm formulation that contains the following ingredients:
5% Montanov L
5% Oliwax LC
(Oils and butters subject to change, these are just "placeholders" while I figure out which oils and butters to use in the final products.)
I am experiencing blooming as you can see in the picture.
I have found very little information about this phenomenon on the internet.
I have been cooling the balm in the fridge because I think it helps create a more reflective surface, but one of the bits of information I was able to find did mention that temperature fluctuations exacerbate blooming. So maybe I should stop doing that?
Would bringing this to trace in an ice water bath help?
Please let me know if you have any other suggestions. I really really want this to work. Thank you so so much.
I am working on a cleansing balm formulation that contains the following ingredients:
5% Montanov L
5% Oliwax LC
5% Cetyl Alcohol
5% Lauryl Laurate
5% Lauryl Laurate
5% Polysorbate 80
10% Shea Butter
10% Mango Butter
30% Apricot Kernel Oil
25% Rice Bran Oil
10% Shea Butter
10% Mango Butter
30% Apricot Kernel Oil
25% Rice Bran Oil
0.9% Sea Buckthorn Oil
0.1% Rosemary Oleoresin
(Oils and butters subject to change, these are just "placeholders" while I figure out which oils and butters to use in the final products.)
I am experiencing blooming as you can see in the picture.
I have found very little information about this phenomenon on the internet.
I have been cooling the balm in the fridge because I think it helps create a more reflective surface, but one of the bits of information I was able to find did mention that temperature fluctuations exacerbate blooming. So maybe I should stop doing that?
Would bringing this to trace in an ice water bath help?
Please let me know if you have any other suggestions. I really really want this to work. Thank you so so much.
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For the shiny surface I recommend that you use an old technique that is called "flaming", where you wait for the product to cool then you heat its surface rapidly with a flame.
As for the blooming/sweating, it is usually due to the difference in polarity between the compounds that you are using, so if you have enough time and knowledge you can dissect each compound and determine its polarity and try to eliminate or replace the odd ones.
On the other hand, if you have no qualms with adding some compounds, some surfactants may help you overcome this, or some thickeners such as corn starch and/or fumed silica can help you.
Hope this helps
Thanks again.
looking at your formula, I think you need to reduce low melting point ingredients. Lauryl Laurate - melting point 23-30°C. + Shea and Mango butter. In total, you have 25% of those. Keep those under 10%, to give your product good climate stability.
I think what you are experiencing is called "Syneresis". Please check polarity of those waxes. And the oils. Mixing non-polar and polar ingredients usually results in this issue. [I would check that for you, but have to get back to work
Hope that helps
https://www.cosmeticsandtoiletries.com/research/literature-data/article/21834707/comparatively-speaking-hysteresis-vs-syneresis
You can do a search for this topic in the forum and find all kinds of helpful info. Hope this helps.
Re. cooling it, without rapid cooling it you might graininess.
Lastly, your liquid phase may be too high to be held in place by the rest of the formula.
So, check that your oils have more or less similar polarity, and reduce your oils (try with 40% instead of 60%). Also, don't forget to preheat your butters to prevent blooming.