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Correlating Water Contact Angles and Moisturization/Sensory Claims

While staff that normally writes the Bench & Beyond column is taking some time off, this space offers an article by Olga V. Dueva-Koganov, B. Scott Jaynes, Colleen Rocafort, Shaun Barker and Jianwen Mao at Ciba Specialty Chemicals Corporation in Tarrytown, N.Y., USA.

A Green, Solvent-free Biocatalytic Method to Produce Cosmetic Esters

Cosmetic esters can be produced effectively via a solvent-free, biocatalytic method. This green process, described by the authors, involves combining two reactants and an enzyme, and is driven to high conversion by the removal of by-products through a nitrogen purge—in turn producing high purity materials directly from the reactor.

Benzoyl Peroxide A Review

Improving the Solubility of Benzoyl Peroxide: A Review

In this review, the authors examine studies relating to the solubility of BPO. The clinical trials discussed show that compared with suspended BPO, BPO solubilized by dimethyl isosorbide reduced P. acnes and decreased both inflammatory lesions/irritation and the emergence of antibiotic-resistant P. acnes strains. This reveals the importance of solubilizing BPO for improved efficacy and safety.

Microchannel Processing: A Novel Approach to Making Emulsions

In the present article, microchannel emulsification is explored as a process method that precisely adds a dispersed phase into a continuous phase through an engineered dispersion plate. This approach is shown to produce emulsions with smaller droplets having tighter size distributions than conventional means, which leads to stable products with the limited need, if any, for surfactants.

Presidential Awards for Green Chemistry in Personal Care and Cosmetics

If you think of planet Earth the way you think of the human body, you see how similar they are. Viewed that way, a formulator might easily make the leap from personal care to planetary care. And indeed, some are doing so, especially at the level of controlling pollution.

The Air Up There: Skin VOCs

In 2001, Japanese researchers reported that after the age of 40, some individuals develop a malodor known as “aging odor,” attributed to the presence of unsaturated C9, 2-nonenal. George Preti, PhD, a member of Monell Chemical Senses Center and an adjunct professor of dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, was interested by this report and began to conduct research of his own.

Scale-up Basics for Formulators and Process Engineers

This article aims to help novice formulators understand issues that arise from the scale-up of their recipes, and to remind experienced formulators of some of the less common pitfalls. It also focuses on the unique demands of process development for global implementation at multiple sites, specifically pertaining to the scale-up tasks for process engineers at multinational companies.

Protection of Retinol in Organosilica Microparticles

In this article, retinol encapsulated in organosilica microparticles (12–14% w/w) having an average particle size of 0.3 micron are shown in a 40-day test period to exhibit enhanced stability to oxidation when compared with similar commercial stabilized retinol products.

Cooking Chemistry and the Formulator: Egg Whites and Milk

This article is the first in a four-part series that will highlight connections between the chemistry of cooking and personal care product development—including the reactions that occur and why, and how to best utilize these reactions for the benefit of novice formulators.

Developments in Ceramide Identification, Synthesis, Function and Nomenclature

Advances have been made in recent years to better understand ceramides, as the authors describe here. However, since not all ceramides have the same structure, the nomenclature in the literature and on product labels needs clarification. The Personal Care Products Council recently agreed upon new nomenclature based on four molecular structures, which the authors also discuss.

Formulators and Marketers: Working Better Together

It is often said that the most challenging interface during product development is the one between R&D and marketing. Five years ago the Journal of Product Innovation Management reported that significant barriers exist between these two key product innovation functions.

Bio-based Esters for a Smaller Footprint

Succinic acid is commercially produced from fossil-based feedstocks via catalytic hydrogenation of maleic anhydride or as a byproduct of adipic acid production. This carboxylic acid can be used to produce acyl halides, carboxylic acid salts, anhydrides, esters, amides, imides, nitriles, butane diol and other materials for use in a number of industries.

BroccoliExtract850

Amphiphilic Silicones to Extract Botanical Actives

Silicone-based compounds enable chemists to extract the desired fractions of materials from plants as well as impart cosmetic aesthetics. Here the authors discuss how to extract actives using amphiphilic silicones that have different partition coefficients, which are obtained by altering the ratio of oil-, water- and fluoro-soluble groups on the silicone molecule.

Antiaging in a Different Light: Assessing How Chromophores Color Perception

Aging influences cutaneous parameters that give rise to progressive changes in three skin chromophores, altering the visual homogeneity of skin. To address these changes, the authors developed and examined the effects of a complex based on Siegesbeckia orientalis and Rabdosia rubescens using a novel skin imaging technique.

Research in Cosmetic Valley

R&D is essential within Cosmetic Valley. It combines actors from large industrial groups with teams from universities and smaller companies. Following is a consolidated group of interviews regarding research in Cosmetic Valley.

The Effect of Skin Metabolism on the Absorption of Chemicals

Skin expresses enzymes that can metabolize endogenous molecules but little is known regarding how they impact the delivery of xenobiotics. This review of recent works shows that skin metabolism alters the dermal absorption of lipophilic compounds, which opens new areas of investigation regarding the safety and efficacy of topically applied cosmetics.

The Effect of Skin Metabolism on the Absorption of Chemicals

Skin expresses enzymes that can metabolize endogenous molecules but little is known regarding how they impact the delivery of xenobiotics. This review of recent works shows that skin metabolism alters the dermal absorption of lipophilic compounds, which opens new areas of investigation regarding the safety and efficacy of topically applied cosmetics.

Consumer Perception of Fine Lines and Wrinkles: Qualitative Assessment

There are varying definitions, associations and overall impressions of fine lines and wrinkles among different consumer segments. The findings of this study offer invaluable insight into consumers’ opinions, and by qualitative in-depth interviews, they provide a well-defined vernacular for aging descriptors. This language is critical for developmental research, consumer evaluation and marketing within the cosmetic industry.