In the field of personal care and textile care, cationic conditioners and cosmetic emulsifiers are two types of key raw materials that support the core functions of products.The former dominates the efficiency of care, while the latter focuses on the stability of the formula. Although the functional positioning of the two is different, they both directly affect the product experience and market competitiveness.
I.Molecular structure
The performance difference between the two types of raw materials is essentially the innate difference in molecular structure, which directly determines their functional characteristics and application scenarios.
A cationic conditioner represented by
Cetrimonium chloride, the molecular structure contains quaternary ammonium salt cationic groups.Because the surface of the skin, hair and fabric is often negatively charged, the electrostatic adsorption of positive and negative charges enables such conditioners to be firmly attached to the surface of the matrix to form a continuous protective film.
Cosmetic emulsifiers (such as ceteareth 25, OILREE® MY925) have a hydrophilic and oleophilic amphiphilic molecular structure: one end is a polar group (adapted to the aqueous phase), and the other end is a non-polar group (adapted to the oil phase).This structure allows it to reduce the interfacial tension of oil and water, evenly disperse the oil phase into tiny droplets and stabilize it in the aqueous phase (or vice versa), avoid formula stratification and precipitation, and optimize the skin feel of the product.
II.Core performance comparison:
| Performance indicators | Cationic conditioners (take Cetrimonium chloride as an example) | Cosmetic emulsifiers (take OILREE® MY925 as an example) |
| Core functions | softening, antistatic, moisturizing and repairing | emulsifying and dispersing, formula stability, skin feeling adjustment |
| Applicable system | conditioner, fabric softener, body lotion | cream, lotion, hand cream, conditioner |
| Skin-friendly (safety level) | Level 1-2 (mild and low irritation, suitable for sensitive scalp /skin) | Level 1-3 (low irritation, suitable for all skin types) |
| pH tolerance range | 4.0-8.0 | 3.0-11.0 |
| Recommended addition | 0.5%-3.% | 1%-5% |
III.Scenario application
The selection of raw materials needs to closely follow the product function positioning and use environment to avoid blind substitution. The following are typical application scenarios and selection recommendations for the two types of raw materials:
Cationic conditioner:
1. Personal care field
Hair care products: it is the core raw material of conditioner and hair mask.For dry and frizzy hair, adding Cetrimonium chloride can reduce the coefficient of friction of the hair and achieve a supple effect.When used with amino acid moisturizers, it can also enhance the hydration of hair and reduce bifurcation.
Body care products: Adding it to body lotion and hand cream can form a breathable protective film on the surface of the skin, slow down moisture loss, while improving skin smoothness and improving dryness and peeling problems.
2. Textile care field
Fabric softener: As the core component of catic fabric softener, adding it can improve the softness of cotton, linen, and chemical fiber fabrics, and has excellent washing resistance, especially suitable for delicate fabrics such as wool and silk, which can reduce fiber damage and damage after washing.
Cosmetic emulsifier:
1. Skin care products
Face cream or emulsion: As an oil in water emulsion, adding 2.0%-4.0% can evenly disperse oils (such as squalane and shea butter) into 5-10µm droplets to form a delicate emulsion.With acrylic copolymer thickener, the viscosity of the product can be adjusted to avoid stickiness when applying.
Sunscreen: After adding, it can stabilize sunscreens such as zinc oxide and titanium dioxide to avoid settlement and agglomeration, ensure uniform sun protection effect, and improve product ductility and reduce whitening.
2. Makeup and makeup remover products
Liquid foundation: It can improve the dispersion of toner, make the foundation texture uniform, improve concealer, and not easy to get stuck in powder and take off makeup.
Makeup remover products: it can quickly dissolve makeup oil, emulsify quickly after encountering water, and is easy to clean without residue.
IV.Product analysis
1. Cationic conditioner--Cetrimonium chloride (OSMFACT® MY1631E)
Basic parameters
OSMFACT®MY1631E
INCI name: CETRIMONIUM CHLORIDE (cetyltrimethylammonium chloride)
Appearance: White paste (under 25℃ conditions)
Effective content: 68%-72% (ethanol is the solvent, the solvent content is 30%-32%)
CAS No.: 112-02-7 (main component), 64-17-5 (ethanol)
Key indicators: Free amine≤2mgKOH/g; pH value of 1% aqueous solution 6.0-8.0
Packing specifications: 50KG /barrel, 100KG /barrel, 190KG / barrel
Core advantage
The purity of the ingredients is controllable: the effective content is stable in the range of 68%-72%, and the impurity content is low to avoid affecting the stability of the formula.
Excellent compound compatibility: when mixed with common care ingredients such as cocamidopropyl betaine, panthenol, amino acid surfactants, there is no precipitation, stratification or flocculation, and it can be directly integrated into the existing formula system.
Strong long-lasting function: the adhesion rate on the surface of the hair is over 85%, and more than 60% of the active ingredients can still be retained after 3 rinses to avoid rapid drying and frizz after washing.
Application recommendations
Applicable products: conditioner, hair mask, disposable hair care essential oil, fabric softener, hair dye conditioning component.
How to add: Add when the formula temperature drops below 45℃, and stir at 300-500rpm for 5-8 minutes to ensure uniform dispersion.
Precautions:
Avoid direct mixing with equal strength anionic surfactants, and the formula needs to be added in stages to prevent precipitation from ion reactions.
The product contains ethanol and is a highly flammable liquid. It needs to be kept away from fire sources during operation, and the storage area needs to be ventilated and explosion-proof.
2. Cosmetic emulsifier-OILREE® MY925 (oil-in-water emulsifier)
Basic parameters
OILREE®MY925
INCI name: CETEARETH-25
Appearance: White flake (under 25℃ conditions)
Safety level: Level 1-3 green
Purity: 99%-100%
CAS number: 68439 49 6
Solubility: Fat soluble
Packing specification: 20KG /bag
Core advantage
Strong emulsifying ability: As a classic oil-in-water emulsifier pair, it can be used alone or in combination. It can formulate a stable emulsion that is ion-resistant and acid-base-resistant, and there is no stratification or precipitation in long-term storage (12 months).
The skin feeling is optimized significantly: the emulsified emulsion has a delicate texture, is smooth and easy to push away when applied, has no graininess, and can enhance the moisture of the product to avoid dryness and tightness.
Application recommendations
Applicable products: face cream, lotion, hand cream, body lotion, conditioner, baking cream；
Recommended dosage: 1.0%-5.0%
V.Selection to avoid pits: 3 key precautions
1.Cost and performance balance: If the product is positioned at affordable prices for the public, you can choose Cetrimonium chloride of conventional purity, without the need to pursue a 99% high-purity model.If the formula is a simple emulsion, this ceteareth 25 can be used alone to meet the needs and reduce the cost of compounding.
2.Process adaptability: When compounding cationic conditioners with emulsifiers, the order in which the oil phase is stabilized first and the conditioner is added later must be followed-the emulsifier and the oil phase are first mixed to complete the emulsification, and the conditioner is added after the temperature drops below 45℃ to avoid high temperature damage to the quaternary ammonium salt structure, resulting in decreased nursing performance.
3. Actual scenario: When choosing an emulsifier, the dosage needs to be adjusted according to the proportion of the oil phase of the formula-the higher the proportion of the oil phase, the amount of emulsifier added can be appropriately increased.Cationic conditioners need to be tested against the target matrix to ensure that the ideal softening effect can be achieved on different hair types.
Conclusion
Although cationic conditioners and cosmetic emulsifiers have different functions, they are the key to improving product competitiveness.Cetrimonium chloride takes efficient care as the core to solve the problems of surface softening and moisturizing.Ceteareth 25 takes stability as its gripper and builds a high-quality formula system.When selecting models, you only need to closely follow the functional requirements of the product, combine the performance parameters of raw materials and application scenarios, and accurately match to create a product with both effect and experience.
Yichang Mingya New Material Technology Co., Ltd.
