• Advanced Questions

  What type of non-ionic surfactant stabilizes a conditioner with cationic surfactant and how?

  Posted by Abdullah on April 22, 2022 at 5:45 am

  Suppose we have a conditioner with

  1% cationic surfactant (BTAC, BTMS or SPDMA)
  2% fatty alcohol

  It is advised that adding a non-ionic surfactant makes this more stable.

  Questions:
  1. what is the mechanism and how does a non-ionic surfactant stabilizes this conditioner?

  2. What type of non-ionic surfactant stabilizes this? 

  3. Does adding glyceryl stearate, glyceryl oleate, decyl or lauryl glucoside or cocamiCocamidopropyl betaine stabilizes it?

  4. Can increasing the amount of fatty alcohol alone stabilize it?
  

  ketchito replied 2 years, 8 months ago 3 Members · 2 Replies

  • cationic
  • conditioner
  • nonionic
  • stabilizer
  • surfactant
• 2 Replies

• 

  Camel

  Member

  April 22, 2022 at 8:18 am

  I think glyceryl oleate can stabilize it, according to a seller it can stabilize hair conditioner and INCIDecoder says so, too. 

  I don’t know the answers to your other questions. Hope someone will help. I am curious, too. 

• 

  ketchito

  Member

  April 22, 2022 at 2:35 pm

  @Abdullah If you want to make a O/W emulsion, then a medium-high ethoxylated non ionic sulfactant should be added (like ceteareth-20, for example). It would form a micellar arrangement like any other emulsifier. In the presence of a cationic surfactant, you might get a mixed micellar arrangement with non ionic and cationic surfactants in alternating positions.

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