[evchem2]

comments above make sense to me. On an unrelated note, how do you incorporate both xanthan and cationic guar? Are you worried about any long term instability since you have both anionic and cationic polymer in your formulation?

[evchem2]

Better actuators- packaging can influence the spray pattern. Glycerin shouldn’t be separating from a water based serum, you have something else going on

[evchem2]

 Carbomer is not a great choice for this kind of system because it will function best (in terms of clarity and viscosity building) at pH closer to neutral.  Even the ultrez grade is still not very electrolyte tolerant and you have plenty of salt sources. Check out the lubrizol website or UL prospector if you have access. 

Additionally, your preservation system will see huge drop off inefficacy as pH increases. Those salts should really be used for systems where pH is <5. 

Your system doesn’t add up to 100% by quite a bit, is there a typo or are you excluding ingredients? Either way if your water phase is really only ~60%, you cannot make a “100%” aloe gel, the aloe can only reconstitute in the available water. There’s also some debate about the labelling (at least in US) if you can really list your INCI as Aloe juice when what you intentionally added is Aloe powder.

So you may want to either choose a new preservative system that works at neutral pH so you can keep carbomer- you’ll still likely need excess because of the aloe, or a different rheology modifier (xanthan gum for example, the grade you get will impact the final appearance greatly but it can handle lower pH and salt)

[evchem2]

What pH is your formulation at?

[evchem2]

At 5.5 sodium benzoate is mostly in the salt form which is ineffective as a preservative. Agree with other comments on that you need to switch to a different preservation strategy. 

[evchem2]

Bar Gel G from Barnet Products (INCI: Polyglyceryl-10 tristearate) works to some extent, but I’m not sure if they still carry that product.

Kelco-Care from CP Kelco/Lubrizol (INCI: Sphingomonas ferment extract) will also work, though without heat it may take a day or two to see full hydration.

[evchem2]

I would say the only possible concern is maybe micro count, sometimes the food spec is higher since the products  generally have shorter shelf life

[evchem2]

I don’t know what specific grades of xg and HEC you’re using but they could be contributing to pilling (esp in combination with the starch and silica), can I ask why you’re using all 4?  

[evchem2]

I agree with what’s already been said- I  also think you could drop the coconut oil to  just claims level (0.01%), it’s not functional for your formula and will just make it harder to have clarity, require higher usage level of PEG-40… based on that benchmark I’d say your 1% line is right after the VP/VA

[evchem2]

We had a storage tank inline from our filtration/purification system- I’m not sure how storing in the production tank would work. You would probably want to validate you are able to totally disinfect the tank, maybe let some water sit in the tank for your worst-case timeline and test? I can see it being very demanding if you go that route so the second tank may end up being less costly in terms of time/ liability.

[evchem2]

I’d opt for liquid germall for preservation, but use level might be closer to 0.5%. Which form of vitamin E are you using? If it’s tocopheryl acetate it’s pointless and you should switch to tocopherol or eliminate entirely

[evchem2]

EGMS is also used for pearlizing, you may be able to get opacity from the fatty alcohols you have currently but not pearl.

[evchem2]

i couldn’t find anything comparing different acids but some suppliers have charts like you’re describing for their individual preservatives

[evchem2]

HDPE is high density polyethylene, it is polyethylene but has different properties than lower density

https://sciencing.com/differences-hdpe-plastic-polyethylene-plastic-6807965.html
https://omicoplastics.com/blog/ldpe-hdpe-similarities-and-differences/

[evchem2]

Is it very thick? Sea moss could be improperly labeled carrageenan which would not act as an emulsifier but maybe it could stabilize the system enough if the oil content is low. But agree with the others, they could just have left out the emulsifier altogether from the LOI

[evchem2]

@Anca_Formulator i see thanks for clarifying. I’ve never used the paddle culture, but isn’t it the same issue? The paddle’s been exposed to air for the past 3 months?  Even if the kit is not expired once you’ve exposed it I think the most reliable results are probably the ones after the ~120 hours/whatever the paddle supplier recommends.

[evchem2]

You’ve had the jug open for 3 months? I’m not surprised something would show up after continual opening and reuse

[evchem2]

What kind of zinc- particle size, coated vs uncoated? 
When you say it didn’t work, in what way- emulsion failed, desired effect not present at all or not present enough?

[evchem2]

You don’t have a lot of surfactant, so even though salt can help thicken it may not be enough to build viscosity like you’re hoping for. Did you make a salt curve for your formula? You also already have acrylates and HEC thickening, so why add salt on top?

I second Abdullah that Glycol stearate should have a better pearlescent look. You can also try heating your base and cooling slowly, this should help the glycol stearate form some larger crystals that create the effect you’re hoping for. If you don’t want to heat the whole base, you can buy a premade pearl blend for cold-process use, or try to create your own premix.

https://knowledge.ulprospector.com/5647/pcc-adding-pearlescence-in-cosmetics/

[evchem2]

@Farah - I’d say yes to overhead mixer before homogenizer. Being able to get different blades will allow you work on a variety of product types, the homogenizer can help with stability but I think  you can still achieve a lot without it. I do think you’re right about the stir bar solution mixing too, especially if you’re using xanthan and guar together. The tea sieve should work decently well

[evchem2]

@Farah yes the drill with its various blades would mimic what overhead stirrers do. For homogenizers they are really more rotor stator types (at least from my experience), the benchtop version is usually something like a silverson or a rotosolver.  Your immersion blender may replicate some of the high shear, but will also likely bring in air if you can’t control the speed.

[evchem2]

@Farah okay so I’d definitely recommend upping the oil used to disperse the gums, or (my preference) you can use any glycol (ex glycerin/ propanediol/ butylene glycol) to slurry. The glycols are all miscible in water, they’re humectants, and they can help the preservation of your product (lower water activity).  

I’d say with that equipment you are going to incorporate air very easily which is a problem for serums but even worse for any emulsions you may want to try in the future. If you have even a drill you could buy different blades that would provide different advantages and should reduce air incorporation (a prop style blade), or ones that provide shear would help mitigate clumping issues (Cowles type blade). 

The guar, xanthan, and acacia should all hydrate in room temperature water just as much as they would if heated. If you do incorporate too much air, you could use the heat to thin out your solution and stir carefully to help get some air out. Hope this helps- good luck!

[evchem2]

@Farah if you’re going to do the slurry,  a ratio of ~3:1 dispersant: gums  should be a good starting point- when you say it wasn’t easier to hydrate you mean you saw clumping? 

Maybe I’m missing something but why are you heating this formula? I believe all your gums are cold water soluble (aside from the flax mucilage)

[evchem2]

not as sole preservative if that’s what you’re asking (in combo with Euxyl PE9010  INCI: Phenxyethanol /Ethylhexylglycerin), but I did use it in a cream and it had a bonus side effect of reducing the soaping I was seeing. 

[evchem2]

Can’t really help on the filters, maybe look at some commercial reef safe benchmarks for inspiration? 
Are you looking for an exact replacement for Ganex or just another oil-soluble film former? Ganex is now sold under Antaron trade name, there’s Unimer U-15 from Givaudan, and Coast Southwest calls their Endicare® SC-530 an alternative to Ganex though it’s water soluble.