About Lamellar maker

A natural, EO-free oil-in-water emulsifier concept.

Key features

• Gives a smooth and light skin feel
• Excellent spreading properties
• Outstanding emulsifying properties
• No need for co-emulsifier
• Functions as a self-emulsifying system by creating a lamellar gel in the continuous aqueous phase ??Hydrosomes concept
• Emulsifies any oil phase type and concentration
• Incorporation of organic and inorganic sun filters in formulations
• Formulations containing ethanol
• Water free Oil/Polyol emulsions
• Perfume emulsifier ??can incorporate high levels of fragrance

Recommended applications

Milks, lotions and creams
Anyhydrous products

Benefits of Liquid crystal systems

• Improved dissolution of poorly water soluble actives .
• Liquid crystals can protect and facilitate the transport of fragile molecules e.g. proteins

• Controlled active release:
• Multilayers reduce the interfacial transport of actives dissolved in oil phase

• Active delivery can be tailored depending on the active
• Oleosome structure may enhance delivery of oil soluble ingredients
• Hydrosome structure may enhance delivery of water soluble actives

• Prolonged hydration potential:
• Up to 50% water bound up in swollen water layers.
• This water is less prone to evaporation.
• In-vivo tests moisturization lasts 3 times longer

• Effective Transepidermal Water Loss (TWEL)
• Easy to formulate
• Structure similar to skin
• Well liked skin feel

Product details

INCI name: Sorbitan Stearate (and) Sucrose Cocoate
HLB value: +/-6

Appearance: amber flakes

pH must be: equal to or greater than 4.5 (formulations with a pH less than 4.5 will not be stable)

Suggested percentage:

• 0.5% will stabilise an emulsion
• 2% to 5% if used as the sole emulsifier.
  

Usage:

• Disperse Lamellar maker in water, slowly heat to 80°C with moderate stirring.
• Slowly add heated oil phase, with intensive stirring. If adding cold oil, maintain water/lamellar phase at 75°C
• Begin cooling with gentle stirring.
• Add preservative (optional) at 35°C and continue cooling to room temperature.

For lotion viscosity it may be  beneficial to add a small quantity of a hydrocolloid like xanthan gum to improve stability.

In this case:

• Disperse Xanthan gum in water at room temperature, let it fully hydrate (15 min).
• Disperse Lamellar maker in water, slowly heat to 80°C with moderate stirring.
• Add hydrated Xanthan gum to Lamellar/water phase with moderate stirring, maintain 75°C.
• Slowly add heated oil phase, with intensive stirring. If adding cold oil, maintain Lamellar/water phase at 75°C
• Begin cooling with gentle stirring.
• Add preservative (optional) at 35°C and continue cooling to room temperature..

Cream-like consistency may be achieved by increasing the level of the emulsifier and/or of the oil phase.

It is essential that usage guidelines regarding temperature and stirring speed (slow, moderate, intensive) are followed, in order to maintain the integrity of the liquid crystal structure.

Professional sample formulations and formulations info (open as PDFs)

Storage: Store in cool and dry place in closed container. Keep away from direct strong light and heat.

About Liquid crystal structures in emulsions

"Liquid crystal structures in emulsion formation have become increasingly important because of the unique properties that they confer.

These organised systems are a mixture of amphiphilic compounds stabilised by the attraction of the molecules of a polar solvent, usually water. Liquid crystals are characterised by a very compact structure in which slightly longer formed molecules are arranged along parallel axes. The action of specific molecular interaction compacts and organises them in parallel.

The temperature in a liquid crystal system is very important. The tendency to align is reduced by thermal agitation, while the cooling of the system increases the forces that cause the alignment, allowing the molecules to form a crystal state.

Two structures are found in the emulsions: oleosomes and hydrosomes.

Oleosomes are multilayers of lamellar liquid crystals surrounding the oil droplets that become randomly distributed as they progress into
the continuous phase. The rest of the liquid crystals produce a viscoelastic gel phase.

In the case of hydrosomes the lamellar liquid crystals produce a gel network in the continuous phase. The lamellar phase becomes swollen with water in between the bilayers.

The network structure of liquid crystals extends throughout the emulsion and provides good suspending properties and it also improves emulsion stability by restraining the movement of droplets, thus reducing the tendency for droplets to coalesce.

The stratum corneum consists of lamellar liquid crystalline structures of bilayers of ceramide, cholesterols and fatty acids. There are obvious similarities between the natural biological skin lipid system and the submicroscopic bi-molecular membranes of oil-in-water skincare products.

Emulsions based on liquid crystal technology hold more water in contact with the skin for a longer period and tend to penetrate the stratum corneum to a greater degree than other skin care products yet do not disrupt its bi-layer structure. They also have the advantage of being thixotropic, so spreading properties are considerably enhanced. " Woodruff, John, Surfactants 2005. http://www.creative-developments.co.uk

liquid crystal concepts

Currently there are two lyotropic liquid crystal systems for cosmeceutical applications. Both systems are able to form lamellar phase at low concentrations

Oleosomes

• Liquid crystal phase build-up by diffusion of oil phase into water
• Diffusion from the oil droplet (=oleo)
• Oil droplets surrounded by multilamellar liquid crystalline phases

Hydrosomes

• Lamellar gel network build-up in continuous water phase
• Oil droplets stabilized by visco-elastic gel network

Lamellar maker 2121 is a liquid crystals emulsifying system. This mixture of sorbitan stearate with sucrose cocoate is a new generation, European, sugar based emulsifier.  As well as forming o/w emulsions it can be used to form water-free emulsions based on an oil phase with a polyol and it forms stable emulsions with high ethanol content.  Lamellar maker 2121 is a hydrosome liquid crystal system