OCTOBER 2013 • Vol. 19 No. 8
New York Society of Cosmetic Chemists
www.nyscc.org
A Memorable Formulation Experience
…by Paul Thau
Development of an Innovative “Petrolatum Hydrating Aerosol Foam” that was Made Possible by Contributions from Individuals with Diverse Skills
E
arly in my cosmetic industry career, several dermatologists, particularly Dr. Albert Kligman, had endorsed the use of petrolatum as a particularly effective skin hydrating and protective agent for patients experiencing extremely dry and scaly skin. Dr. Kligman frequently stated at professional meetings that the first company to overcome the cosmetic inelegance of petrolatum without altering it’s moisturizing efficacy would have a breakthrough product for routine cosmetic use.
Development of a Petrolatum Hydrating Aerosol Foam I was pleasantly surprised during the mid-1980’s when a colleague representing Alcolac Chemical informed me that his firm had been able to develop a fluid emulsion containing 40% petrolatum USP (“Vaseline” grade). This was indeed a development that defied my intuitive expectation. Fortuitously, an R&D colleague
of mine was able to test this 40% petrolatum lotion vs. Vaseline grade petrolatum by the classical Kligman Regression Test procedure with a dry skin clinical panel for moisturizing efficacy. The results indicated equal efficacy. However, the 40% petrolatum lotion was also judged by the panelists to have tacky application properties and therefore was not considered to be cosmetically acceptable. In the laboratory, I found the 40% petrolatum lotion to be unstable when I attempted to dilute it with water to reduce the concentration of petrolatum. Since the supplier had not provided me with the quantitative composition of this lotion, I embarked upon developing my own emulsion using a range of petrolatum levels from 20% to 30%. I also decided to include 5.0% cyclomethicone and 3.0% DRY FLO™ to improve application and sensory properties. The quantitative formulation chosen with the best stability and application aesthetics is shown below: Table I. Petrolatum emulsion concentrate Ingredient Water Petrolatum USP Cyclomethicone Aluminum starch octenylsuccinate Steareth-2 Steareth-20 Imidazolidinyl urea Methylparaben Propylparaben Carbomer 941 Triethanolamine Sodium cetyl-stearyl sulfate Cetyl alcohol (viscosity modifier) Disodium EDTA
Conc. (% w/w) 68.55 20.00 5.00 3.00 1.73 0.58 0.30 0.20 0.15 0.12 0.12 0.10 0.10 0.05 (Continued on page 6)
NYSCC CHAPTER MEETING • OCTOBER 3rd Pleasantdale Château, West Orange, New Jersey