-
help adding menthol at 10% to a prexisting muscle gel
I have a muscle gel that i need to add 10% menthol to. currently the gel contains 5% and is stable.
ingredients are as followed:AquaIsopropyl AlcoholMentholCarbomerTriethanolamineCamphorEthylhexylglycerinIlex paraguariensisMelaleuca alternifolia Essential Oil( tea tree oil)Tocopheryl acetateOrganic Aloe veraOrganic ArnicaPhenoxyethanolfindings are that when we heat the menthol and add to the gel it will not mix.
do we need to add additional carbomer to thicken the solution, or add something like a polysorbate 20 to help the additional menthol emulsify with the gel?
any help would be much appreciated. want to use this product for personal use but the 5% menthol is not strong enough and like how the 15% feels! -
8 Replies
-
In my opinion, increasing surfactants (polysorbate 20) or solvents (Isopropyl Alcohol/Alcohol) seems rather feasible.
Add additional carbomer might not be avoided precipitation. Unless you want to develop an emulsion, but still need enough solvent/surfactant/oil to avoid menthol crystallization. -
I took on an almost identical project several years ago. It is possible to “alter” the base, but in the end, it will be superior and less expensive in the long run to start from scratch. (In bulk it is less expensive to produce the base yourself, you can also ensure and validate that the other raw materials are diluted, etc.)
-
It seems when the polysorbate 20 is added the menthol emulsifies well, but then makes the gel too thin. How should we go about thickening the gel once the menthol is emulsified?
-
In this Product, Polysorbate 20 is used for Tea Tree Oil. The Menthol was solubilized in the Alcohol. This would reflect in the grade of Carbomer and the fact that they use Triethanolamine as the neutralizer. 4% Menthol was achieved with the alcohol, but I don’t think this is an option with 15% net Menthol. This looks a lot like a Private Label product I have reverse-engineered from a specific retail supplier.
-
-
Great thoughts and thanks for the comments. Would it still be feasible to solubilize the additional 10% menthol with the polysorbate? Or should it remain consistent with the solubilizer from the base product?
-
Not sure if you still needed help on this but cutting down on water and add a lot of propylene glycol/glycerin will give you a nice clear gel. I use 20% propylene and 30% ipa for a 6% menthol gel
Log in to reply.