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what can I not use with xanthan gum?
What are some known cosmetic ingredients that clash with xanthan gum that I should watch out for, when formulating with this thickener?
Once I remember I tried mixing an ingredient and it kind of clumped things down instead of thickening.
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2 Replies
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Xanthan Gum is anionic (negatively charged), so it is incompatible with cationic (positively charged) ingredients.
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@fedaro is right on the cationic incompatibility- sometimes you can overcome this by including a high amount of salt (>2%) in a formulation and adding the polymers far apart from each other in the process, but that comes with its own issues.
Other than cationics, xanthan is pretty tolerant of many situations and ingredients. There are a few unique situations I can think of- for example, some xanthan gum is treated with cellulase to clarify it, so if you are using a cellulose-based polymer in a formula with xanthan gum you should ask your supplier about cellulase activity. In high pH (~9+), xanthan can gel in the presence of polyvalents like Ca2+ or Al3+.
What you described sounds like an issue with dispersion of the gum. You can either use high shear to break up any clumps, or next time try creating a premix of xanthan gum in a polyol like glycerin before you add it to the water.
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