What is a Surfactant?
Surfactants are a primary component of cleaning detergents. The word surfactant means surface active agent. As the name implies, surfactants stir up activity on the surface you are cleaning to help trap dirt and remove it from the surface.
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Surfactants have a hydrophobic (water-hating) tail and a hydrophilic (water-loving) head. The hydrophobic tail of each surfactant surrounds soils. The hydrophilic head is surrounded by water.
How do surfactants work?
When there are a sufficient amount of surfactant molecules present in a solution they combine together to form structures called micelles. As the micelle forms, the surfactant heads position themselves so they are exposed to water, while the tails are grouped together in the center of the structure protected from water.
The micelles work as a unit to remove soils. The hydrophobic tails are attracted to soils and surround them, while the hydrophilic heads pull the surrounded soils off the surface and into the cleaning solution. Then the micelles reform with the tails suspending the soil in the center of the structure.
Types of Surfactants
The hydrophilic head of each surfactant is electrically charged. The charge can be negative, positive, or neutral. Depending on the charge of the hydrophilic head, the surfactant is classified as anionic, nonionic, cationic or amphoteric.
Anionic Surfactants
Anionic surfactants have a negative charge on their hydrophilic end. The negative charge helps the surfactant molecules lift and suspend soils in micelles. Because they are able to attack a broad range of soils, anionic surfactants are used frequently in soaps and detergents. Anionic surfactants create a lot of foam when mixed. While anionic surfactants are excellent for lifting and suspending particulate soils, they are not as good at emulsifying oily soils.
Sulfates, sulfonates, and gluconates are examples of anionic surfactants.
Nonionic Surfactants
Nonionic surfactants are neutral, they do not have any charge on their hydrophilic end. Nonionic surfactants are very good at emulsifying oils and are better than anionic surfactants at removing organic soils. The two are frequently used together to create dual-action, multi-purpose cleaners that can not only lift and suspend particulate soils, but also emulsify oily soils.
Certain nonionic surfactants can be non-foaming or low-foaming. This makes them a good choice as an ingredient in low-foaming detergents.
Nonionic surfactants have a unique property called a cloud point. The cloud point is the temperature at which the nonionic surfactant begins to separate from the cleaning solution, called phase separation. When this occurs, the cleaning solution becomes cloudy. This is considered the temperature for optimal detergency. For low foaming cleaners, optimal detergency is at the cloud point; for foaming cleaners optimal detergency is either just below the cloud point or at the start of the cloud point. The agitation of low foaming cleaners is sufficient to prevent phase separation.
The temperature of the cloud point depends upon the ratio of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic portions of the nonionic surfactant. Some cloud points are at room temperature while others are very high. Some nonionic surfactants don’t have a cloud point because they have a very high ratio of hydrophilic to hydrophobic moieties.
Examples of some common nonionic surfactants include cocamide, ethoxylates, and alkoxylates.
Cationic Surfactants
Cationic surfactants have a positive charge on their hydrophilic end. The positive charge makes them useful in anti-static products, like fabric softeners. Cationic surfactants can also serve as antimicrobial agents, so they are often used in disinfectants.
Cationic surfactants cannot be used with anionic surfactants. If positively charged cationic surfactants are mixed with negatively charged anionic surfactants, they will fall out of solution and no longer be effective. Cationic and nonionic surfactants, however, are compatible.
Examples of some common cationic surfactants include alkyl ammonium chlorides.
Amphoteric Surfactants
Amphoteric surfactants have a dual charge on their hydrophilic end, both positive and negative. The dual charges cancel each other out creating a net charge of zero, referred to as zwitterionic. The pH of any given solution will determine how the amphoteric surfactants react. In acidic solutions, the amphoteric surfactants become positively charged and behave similarly to cationic surfactants. In alkaline solutions, they develop a negative charge, similar to anionic surfactants.
Amphoteric surfactants are often used in personal care products such as shampoos and cosmetics. Examples of some frequently used amphoteric surfactants are betaines and amino oxides.
How Surfactants are used in Cleaners
Surfactants are a key ingredient in cleaning products. One thing that differentiates cleaning products is how they are made. Cleaners made from a single chemical, targeting a specific type of soil, are referred to as commodity cleaners. Cleaners that are blends of various chemical ingredients designed to work together to remove various types of soils are referred to as formulated cleaners.
Formulated cleaners usually contain four basic elements: surfactants, hydrotropes, builders and carriers. Hydrotropes are chemicals that keep the otherwise incompatible surfactants and builders stable in a solution. The carrier is either water or a solvent. These elements work together to create mechanical actions to remove soils. The end result is a product that can attack dirt on surfaces with a variety of cleaning mechanisms including emulsifying, lifting, dispersing, sequestering, suspending and decomposing soils of various types. The type of surfactants used in a cleaning product largely determines which soils they will be best at removing.
IPC offers a full line of formulated cleaners that among the safest yet most effective solutions on the market. Request a free sample to test our products for your most challenging cleaning applications.
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A Beginner’s Guide to Working with Natural Surfactants
Trying to avoid SLS and other harsh surfactants in your cosmetics? There are many mild, natural surfactants available. Learn about the different types of natural surfactants, with a list of my favorites.
What is a surfactant?
There are many types of surfactants and they are used for many different purposes, but they all share one quality: they help increase the wetting properties of a liquid. Surfactants can be found almost everywhere. You can find them in everything from detergents and shampoos to toothpaste and even conditioners.
Surfactant definition:
(A surfactant,) also called surface-active agent, (is a ) substance such as a detergent that, when added to a liquid, reduces its surface tension, thereby increasing its spreading and wetting properties. (Encyclopaedia Britannica)
Some surfactants are emulsifiers, others are foaming agents (and some may actually do the opposite of those functions). Some act as detergents, while others act as insecticides or fungicides. Some help with solubilizing (small amounts of oils into water, for example) and others help increase viscosity.
How do surfactants work?
Surfactants affect the surface tension of liquids to increase wetting.
Why would you want to increase wetting?
Normally, when you spray water on a surface like a window, rather than spread evenly over the surface, the water will bead up. That’s because of the surface tension of the water. The molecules of the water come together in a stable configuration and are attracted to each other. When you are trying to clean that window, though, that beading isn’t helping you. You want the water to spread evenly over the surface to better clean it. You also want something that can grab onto the grease and dirt on whatever surface you are trying to clean.
Micelles in surfactants
Surfactants affect the surface tension that is making the water bead up rather than spread out. They have a water-loving head and an fat (oil) loving tail. They come together in structures called micelles.
The structure of a type of micelle.
I already explained a bit about how the micelles in surfactants work in my micellar water recipe, but for those who haven’t read that post, let me give you a quick, simplified explanation. The water-loving heads of the micelles bond with the water while the oil-loving tails on the inside of the micelles bond with the grease and grime. That pulls the grease and grime into the center of the micelles out of contact with the water, making them easier to rinse away.
You’ll also find that hot water helps clean better because the hot water helps melt the fats which makes it easier for them to be brought into the micelles.
Types of surfactants
There are four main types of surfactants, each behaving somewhat differently, and some with completely different functions. The detergent-like surfactants tend to be the anionic, non-ionic and amphoteric surfactants. Some cationic surfactants are used as emulsifiers and are great for hair conditioners. (I use BTMS, a cationic surfactant, in my hair conditioner recipe.)
These are classified based on the charge of the polar head of the surfactant which can have a positive charge (cationic), a negative charge (anionic), or no charge (non-inonic). Amphoteric surfactants have both a cationic and anionic part attached to the same molecule.
Anionic – Anionic surfactants are the most commonly used surfactants because they tend to provide the best cleaning power and the most foam. You’ve probably heard people talking about one of the most commonly used anionic surfactants, SLS (Sodium lauryl sulfate or Sodium Laureth Sulfate). It can be found in everything from shampoos and shower gels to even toothpaste. I’ve also shown you how to make soap (many types by now!), another anionic surfactant.
Anionic surfactants can be harsher on the skin, which is why they are often combined with other types of milder surfactants.
Nonionic – The second most commonly used surfactants are nonionic surfactants. They don’t ionize in water or aqueous solutions. Nonionic surfactants are gentler when cleaning. Because they don’t carry a charge, they are the most compatible with other types of surfactants. Recently, sugar-based nonionic surfactants have been developed to offer a safer, non-toxic alternative to some of the more harsh surfactants on the market up until now.
Cationic – Cationic surfactants don’t generally give foaming like the other types of surfactants. They are often used in hair care products (mainly conditioners and anti-static products because they don’t provide the foaming for use in shampoos) because their positive charge is attracted to the negative charge in hair. This makes it difficult to completely wash them from your hair, so some stays behind to help reduce friction between hairs which, in turn, reduces the amount of electrostatic charge in hair. This helps make hair more manageable and helps prevent damage.
Cationic surfactants aren’t usually compatible with anionic surfactants!
Amphoteric – Amphoteric surfactants can carry either a positive or negative charge depending on the pH of your product. Despite that, they are still compatible with all of the other types of surfactants. These tend to be very mild surfactants which is why they are usually combined with other surfactants. While amphoteric surfactants may not give a lot of foam on their own, they can help boost the foam of the other surfactants. Amphoteric surfactants are often combined with anionic surfactants to reduce their harshness and help stabilize their foam.
Natural surfactants list:
Natural surfactants can be derived from many types of plants. Common sources are coconut or palm, but they can also be derived from other types of fruits and vegetables.
There are many natural surfactants on the market today, and with increased consumer demand, I imagine that many more will be available in time. I have tried many of them, but today I’ll focus on some of my favorites. I like these surfactants because they are gentle, they tend to be easier to find, and they work well together. You can use these in everything from gentle shampoos to shower gels, facial cleanser, and baby washes.
Choosing your surfactants
Keep in mind that many of these surfactants are not palm free, so you’ll want to source them from places that allow for sustainable methods of obtaining their materials. I buy surfactants that have been certified sustainable by RSPO (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil) standards.
Another thing to keep in mind is that these surfactants can differ from manufacturer to manufacturer. The names are polymeric and aren’t referring to an exact structure. Some places will use different plants as the origin of elaborating each surfactant, and the way each surfactant cleans, solubilizes, etc. can vary depending on where you buy it from. I’ll be describing these surfactants based on my suppliers, but you’ll want to check on the specifications of the surfactant you are buying if it’s important to you to know what plants have been used to derive them, the pH, the concentration, etc. Use this list as a general guideline!
Along those lines, while mine are listed as ECOCERT approved, that may also be dependent upon the manufacturer of each surfactant.
I’ll be updating this list and adding more surfactants as I use them and learn more about them. For now, though, this should give you a good starting point to understanding what we are going to be working with.
Coco Glucoside
Coco Glucoside is a non-ionic surfactant that is obtained from coconut oil and fruit sugars, but it can also be obtained from either potato or corn. It is a very gentle, foamy cleanser and is completely biodegradable. You can use it in products that you want to have an ECOCERT certification. It has an alkaline pH (around 12) which makes it self-preserving as is, but you will probably have to adjust the final pH of products using it to pull it into a range more suitable for your skin or hair (and you’ll need to add a preservative).
Decyl Glucoside
Decyl Glucoside is very similar to coco glucoside (non-ionic and ECOCERT compatible), but it has a shorter chain length. It creates less foam (its foam is less stable) than coco glucoside but it does add more viscosity to a product. It is derived from coconut oil and glucose and is completely biodegradable. It can be used in all sorts of shampoos, gels, baby products, etc.
Lauryl Glucoside
Lauryl Glucoside is very similar to the other 2 glucosides I’ve mentioned. It has a longer chain length and more viscosity. It takes longer to foam than the other two, but it also has the most stable foam. While it is also a mild cleanser, it isn’t as mild as the other 2 alkyl polyglucosides.
Comparing the alkyl polyglucosides. I bought the Lauryl Glucosde from a different supplier, so that may also be a factor in the huge difference in appearance. You’ll notice the Lauryl Glucoside I bought was relatively solid, and I had to dilute it quite a bit to be able to use it.
Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate
Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate is a gentle anionic surfactant that can be used in natural products (ECOCERT). It is a great alternative to SLS for a milder, more natural shampoo (or body wash, etc.). It has larger molecules than some of the other surfactants (like SLS) making it unable to penetrate and irritate the skin in the same way. It cleans and provides foam in products made for people with sensitive skin.
Notice
It has been pointed out to me that the EWG rating for Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate has been raised due to the concern that it may be contaminated with ethylene oxide or 1,4 dioxane during the production of this surfactant. It is still generally allowed in natural formulations because it is a mild surfactant. Use personal judgment on whether you feel comfortable using it or not.
Coco Betaine
Coco betaine is a coconut based amphoteric surfactant. It’s mild and can help boost foam and increase the viscosity of products made with it. It’s very mild and provides for gentle cleansing. It’s completely biodegradable and has a pH around 6-8. It is also ECOCERT compatible so it can be used in the elaboration of “natural” and “organic” type products.
Sodium Coco Sulfate
Sodium coco sulfate is an anionic surfactant that is ECOCERT and BDIH friendly. It has a pH of 10-11 and is derived from coconut oil. It is a water-soluble surfactant that is sold in solid form. It’s usually used in non-soap shampoo bars and/or bar cleaners (syndet bars).
Plantapon® SF
Plantapon SF is a mix of vegetable-based surfactants (coconut, corn, and palm based) that can be used in a variety of gentle cleansing products like shampoos, shower gels, and facial cleansers. It includes sodium cocoamphoacetate, lauryl glucoside, sodium cocoyl glutamate, sodium lauryl glucose carboxylate, and glycerin. It has a pH between 6.5 and 7.5.
Because this is a mix of surfactants, it can be a good choice for those who are just delving into working with surfactants. You can easily mix up formulations without needing to buy a lot of raw materials or doing a lot of work. (I’ll work on getting up some recipes that use this as soon as I can.)
Soap nuts and a soap nut solution.
Recommended article:How to Choose 25-50mm calcium carbide?
Completely natural surfactants
SBR Latex - Euclid ChemicalWhile not as effective as the other more processed surfactants derived from natural sources, those looking for a completely natural alternative may be interested in studying some of these natural surfactants. These plant based cleansers all have natural saponins that are a type of non-ionic surfactant. They can be used alone or combined with the other surfactants for a more effective final product.
Soap Nuts (Soap Berries, Aritha)
The fruits taken from the sapindus trees/shrubs from the lychee family have saponins which are natural non-ionic surfactants. They are usually called either soap nuts or soap berries, and they clean without creating much foam.
You can either throw a cloth bag of them in with your laundry to naturally wash your clothes, or you can steep them in warm water to extract a liquid that can be used for cleaning. Make just enough for what you’ll need and you can freeze the rest.
Liquid Yucca Extract
Liquid yucca extract is a natural non-ionic surfactant that comes from the yucca plant, a desert plant that has natural saponins of its own. While you can add it to your homemade shampoos, yucca extract is also used in gardening to help get nutrients to the roots of other plants by washing away concentrated salts that build up.
Shikakai powder
Shikakai powder is another plant with natural saponins which are natural non-ionic surfactants. It is normally used in hair care as a very natural “shampoo.” It naturally has a low pH which makes it ideal for hair care. It’s said to be good for all hair types, especially those that are prone to breakage and damage. Like with the other natural surfactants, you can either combine it with other surfactants or use it on its own. To use it on its own, you make a paste by mixing the powder with warm water and running it through your wet hair once it the paste has cooled. You then leave it to act for 10-15 minutes before rinsing it out. It may slightly darken hair.
Soapwort
Soapwort is another plant that has been used for many years as a soap alternative. It can be used to clean the skin, wash your hair, or even as a laundry soap. It’s especially good for delicate fabrics. To use soapwort, you need to make an infusion of the soapwort in water, and then you can use the resulting liquid as a liquid soap alternative.
How to Select Natural Surfactants [VIDEO]
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Consumers continue to demand more and more “natural” formulations, leading formulators to continue to brainstorm ways to meet this demand. With strict regulations on what can be labeled “natural,” this can be a challenge. How do you know what materials to select? I’ve put together a short video that provides some tips on how to select natural surfactants.
Transcript:
Hi, I’m Belinda Carli, the Director of the Institute of Personal Care Science. And today, I’m going to guide you through natural surfactant selection.
Surfactants are composed of a water-loving head group and an oil-loving tail group. To be a truly natural surfactant, both the head and tail groups need to come from truly natural sources. In the past, most surfactants have been synthetically sourced for at least the head or the tail portion. But now, there is an increasing amount of selection for formulators to choose from. In order to make your selections, you first need to understand how surfactants work and some of the key things consumers look for.
So first, let’s talk about how surfactants clean. Surfactants are segregated into classes based on charge. You have your anionic surfactants which have a negative charge, your nonionic surfactants which have no charge, and amphoteric surfactants which have either a positive or negative charge depending on the pH environment. This video is going to focus on truly natural solutions, and at the moment, amphoterics just aren’t available in this category. So we’re going to focus on anionic and nonionic selections instead.
Anionic surfactants are the best at cleaning, and this is because they clean using charged repulsion. The skin and the hair is negatively charged. So, when you introduce an anionic surfactant, it will form around the oil or dirt that’s adhering to the skin or the hair, and then negative charge will lift the oil or dirt from the surface through ionic repulsion. And this is relatively strong for the surface you’re cleaning.
Nonionic surfactants, on the other hand, do not carry charge. So, they rely on disjointing pressure to force the soil from the surface. This is why anionic surfactants tend to give you a better clean, but they can also be more potentially irritating to the skin because of their better cleansing ability. And there’s more nonionic choices out there. Nonionic surfactants have also got a relatively good mildness profile, but they just simply don’t clean as well. And this is why I would use combinations in formulas.
Contrary to popular belief, you don’t actually need a lot of foam to clean a surface properly. You technically only need enough surfactant to lift all the oil and dirt from the surface. Foam is really just air trapped by the surfactant. But consumers expect to see a relatively high level of foam to think that the product is cleaning or working effectively. So, one of the first things you need to formulate for when making your surfactant formula is a good foam profile. The first thing we’re going to do then is compare various natural surfactants based on their foaming ability.
In order to test the foaming profile of these surfactants, what I did was created 7% active solutions and have put them into these convenient little self-foaming pumps. I’ve also prepared a 7% active solution of sodium lauryl ether sulfate which we’re using as our test standard because everyone knows how well that foams. So next, you see, I’ve dispensed one pump from the self-foaming bottle onto a watch glass. And then we’re going to look at the foam that is generated and how quickly it degrades. And this will give us indication of the best foaming agents from the surfactants selected.
So now, what you can see here is the sodium lauryl ether sulfate plates, these two here, and you can see how this foam is degrading compared to the other samples. The K-Noa foam here, for example, the foam has all but dissipated. While over here, the Plantacare 810 has still got a very creamy, dense-looking foam. The OlivOil Fruttoside has a much more open foam and the Plantacare UP also has a much denser foam profile. This is a really great way of comparing the foaming profiles of the materials as well as how they degrade.
So, it’s been a half an hour now. Remember these were our sodium lauryl ether sulfate benchmark samples. And if we compare the foam, we can see that the densest foam profiles are still the Plantacares and OlivOil Glutamate. The OlivOil Fruttoside has compared well with the sodium lauryl ether sulfate while the Plantacares and OlivOil Glutamate have actually kept their foam profile denser and better than the sodium lauryl ether sulfate benchmark samples.
So, now we’ve compared how they foam, the other important thing, of course, is how well they clean. Let’s evaluate that now. What I’m going to do, I’m going to apply a small amount of an oil-based zinc oxide dispersion onto my hand. Now, two reasons for doing this. One, the zinc oxide is visible, it’s a particle. The other thing is it’s an oil-based product. So, it’s also going to be a little difficult for a foaming product to remove. It’s also gonna help protect my skin barrier between applications. So, let’s take a look at how well each of these materials cleans a specified amount of this zinc oxide oil-based dispersion with one pump from these dispensers again.
So what I have here is 0.25 grams of the oil-based zinc oxide dispersion. I’m going to apply each one of these one by one onto my hand and then use one pump of the 7% active solutions to clean. You’ll be able to see how well they clean. I’ll be evaluating also for the after feel on my skin, which unfortunately you won’t be able to see but I will be able to tell you when I finish testing all eight of these products. So I’m going to start first with the sodium lauryl ether sulfate, our benchmark sample, and then I’ll be comparing each of these natural surfactants against its performance and the after feel.
So, now we’ve compared on the cleaning ability, the foam ability, and the after feel. And now you’re probably gonna say, “Belinda, what do we do with this information?” Well, now, we make our selections based on a good cleansing surfactant. We want to build a good foam profile and we want to make sure, of course, it cleans well with a nice after feel. And this is exactly why we put combinations of surfactants together.
Other factors you need to consider are mildness, price, and how the product is to be used. Because, obviously, the products that had the highest foaming and cleansing ability are best for areas like the hair, which you need to get over a lot of surface tension of the air to hair to be able to clean it effectively. Those with a lower foaming profile, you could, of course, use for facial care products where a high foam isn’t necessarily the biggest requirement. However, a mild skin feel would be.
Last and by no means least is thickening your surfactant. Now, you need to thicken your surfactant formula so that a consumer can pour the product into their hand or a wash cloth without it running readily out of the hand. And you would have seen from the samples I made if they would in a self-foaming dispenser, they were actually quite liquid solutions. So, we need to thicken them.
Now, when you have a charged surfactant, you can thicken with salt. It’s also the combination of surfactants that will help build viscosity. But we’re going to help our surfactants along and use some viscosity modifiers – again, natural viscosity modifiers – to help build the viscosity in the formulations I’m going to show you. We’re also going to add refattening agents. Now, there’s relatively few truly natural refattening agents available on the market at the moment. Going back a few years ago, there were pretty much none. They were mostly ethoxylated. And what these refattening agents do is they actually help provide some conditioning benefits to the skin or the hair. But because they are partially surfactant molecules themselves, they wash readily from the skin or hair without greasy residue.
It’s best not to add straight lipids, or if you do, less than 1%. Because if you add straight lipids into a surfactant formula, the lipids actually go into the surfactant micelle. It reduces their foaming and cleansing power. But when you use refattening or superfatting agents, because they are amphiphilic, they have water-loving and oil-loving portions, they actually go into the surfactant micelle structure rather than need to be stabilized within the micelle itself. And in this way, they don’t impact foam or cleansing ability but still add to the conditioning profile.
In a moment, I’m going to show you some formulation examples and talk you through why I’ve made the selections I have. But remember, another really important additive that you should put into your formulations, are some hydrolyzed proteins or similar natural ingredients. Now, double check this carefully if you are aiming for a COSMOS-compliant formula or an all-natural formulation philosophy because some of them may have some synthetic constituents. But hydrolyzed proteins are actually excellent additives to your foaming products because they help improve mildness and structurally, on the skin or hair, can help protect moisture losses and repair minor damages when they are applied to the skin or the hair and the excess washed away.
So now, let’s get formulating. Now, as I’ve mentioned, these natural surfactants are notoriously hard to thicken, but I’m going to show you now how you can create a luxuriously thick and gentle shampoo or body wash product using these natural materials. And for this, I’m starting with the OlivOil Fruttoside mixed with Plantacare 810UP. To this, I’m going to add a superfatting agent, the TEGOSOFT LSE 65 K Soft. Now, this is a really good natural superfatting agent. You can also use Lamesoft PO 65 by BASF. These materials are really good to provide conditioning benefits to the formula. So this formula we’re creating here, the Fruttoside has an especially soft and gentle conditioning effect on the skin and the hair. So this would be a very gentle formulation for either a body wash or for a dry hair shampoo. Now, I’m going to add the superfatting agent to the surfactants first.
When mixing your surfactants in the lab, it’s very important you don’t create a vortex. Otherwise, you’d just be sucking in air, which will leave you with a beaker full of bubbles. And, of course, in manufacturing, that’s highly undesirable to be left with a vat full of bubbles as well.
Now next, I’m going to add some essential oils and some vitamin E. Now, I’m adding in at this point because I want the essential oils and vitamin E being lipid soluble substances to be mixed into micelles that form with the concentrated surfactant mixture here. If I add them after the water has been added, there’ll then be a majority of water in the formulation, while at this point there is still a majority of surfactant present. And this will help the essential oils and vitamin E to be captured into the micelles and solubilized better in the formulation.
Now, once a homogenous mix has formed, we can now add the water. So we’re really just aiming for a homogenous mixture at this point. As you can see, it is still water thin, extremely thin. So now, we’re going to use gums to thicken. But before we can use gums to thicken this product, we need to check and adjust the pH because that can also have an impact on the formulation.
So first, I’m going to add the preservative because that will also impact on the pH, and then I’m going to adjust the pH of this formula to 5 to 5.3, and that is mainly to suit the preservative that I’m using but it also makes a skin-friendly and compatible pH.
As you can see, even with very significant pH adjustment, it’s still not building any sort of viscosity to this formula. As I mentioned, using natural surfactants makes them notoriously hard to thicken. So we’re now going to use a natural gum to help build viscosity and gel this product.
Now, I’m gonna be adding a significant portion of gum to this formula. So I first need to slurry it so that I can add it effectively to the formula. Now, I’m adding it after I’ve adjusted pH for a couple of reasons. The first is, as you could see while I was testing pH, I was stirring the product quite vigorously, and in the lab that could introduce a lot of bubbles and foam if I had my gum in the product because the gum will help trap air and hold the air in a bubble. So that’s obviously not suitable in a lab setting. And also, because this will build viscosity, which will make it a lot harder to stir the product homogenously for pH adjustment. And that’s more important in a large batch in the manufacturing sense. So, we adjust the pH first, and that also helps us see if pH is going to have any impact on viscosity, which could reduce the amount of gum we need. Now, in this example – and I’m using this particular as an example – so I can show you how to thicken even the most difficult to thicken natural formulations.
And there you have it, a beautifully thick natural surfactant with lovely soft conditioning benefits for either the body or the hair.
Now, I want to show you an alternative system. And one of the reasons I want to show you this surfactant blend is because there is a big misconception out in the marketplace that natural means it’s safer or less irritating, and that’s actually not correct. The irritancy potential or the safety profile of a surfactant formula really has to do with the chemicals you use in it. Whether or not they’re natural or not is not actually the reasoning behind a reduced irritancy profile. So, in this particular formula, I’m going to be showing you a formulation using SugaNate 160 NC. This is sodium laurylglucosides hydroxypropyl sulfonate.
Now, unfortunately, because of the sulfonation in this product, it’s not eligible to be suitable for COSMOS formula, but this is actually one of the least irritating products that you could use. It’s absolutely not irritating to eyes, this raw material.
So, I’m going to show you this formula, and in this formula, I’m also going to use some cocamidopropyl hydroxysultaine [Cola Teric CBS-HP]. I’m using a sultaine in this formula as an amphoteric because it avoids issues with California Proposition 65, which of course effects a lot of your cocamidopropyl betaines. So, in this formula, slightly different materials using, but I really I want to emphasize the point that even if you’re trying to create natural formulas, you shouldn’t disclude some of the materials that are maybe not COSMOS-certified or suitable because natural does not mean it’s safer or milder. And, in fact, this is a very, very mild formula that I’m creating here, suitable for use even with babies. And you’re even going… you’re going to also see with this formula how much easier it is to thicken a product when I’m using amphoterics and anionics compared to relying a lot on your nonionic glycosides.
So first, I have measured out water here, and through this I am going to add Glucamate CCO thickener. This is a really effective thickening agent in surfactant products when there are amphoterics and anionics present.
Now, I’m just going to stir to combine this. You’ll see it will go cloudy. And then I am going to add the amphoteric material and then the anionic material, and you’ll see the viscosity of this formula build.
So, you can see, even with the amphoteric added, viscosity has started to build straight away. The Glucamate CCO thickener being a very efficient viscosity modifier.
So you can see a honey-like consistency from this surfactant build even when using materials that would otherwise be quite difficult to thicken. Now, I would need to add preservative, essential oils or fragrance, and adjust pH. Just be careful when you are creating formulas with more natural surfactant choices because you can lose viscosity very rapidly with some preservative or essential oil choices. So, just be aware of that, when you’re selecting preservatives or essential oils, they may have a big impact on its viscosity and turn what is a nice honey-like consistency product into a watery product even with a thickener present.
Now, one final material I want to introduce you to is Rhodapex ESB-17 NAT. Now, this is sodium lauryl ether sulfate, but it’s actually all biodegradable source, so the carbon entities here are all plant sourced. And even the ethoxylation steps have been carried out using sugar cane-derived materials. So, what I’m going to illustrate here is that we need to keep our options open as formulators. Now, obviously, if we’re saying a no-sulfate formula or a sulfate-free formula, we can’t use this material. But otherwise, this is a fantastic anionic surfactant, and you’ll see just how much easier it is to thicken when I formulate with it.
And there you have it, how to make the best natural surfactant selections and put them together in a formula to suit your specific formulation needs. Remember to check that paperwork carefully and don’t claim something is truly natural if it’s actually not.
And remember, mildness, foaming profile, and performance, as well as that after feel is what matters most to your consumer. If they are looking for natural, they’re usually prepared to pay a little bit more for it, but they won’t repeat purchase if they’re not happy with how it’s foamed, performed, or feels after use. Happy formulating.
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