Cream Formulation Issues: Oil Separation and Lumpy Texture

Subject: Oil Separation in Cream Formulation

Hello,

Thank you for providing your detailed cream formulations and the issues you encountered. The problem of oil separation in both formulas is primarily due to the incorrect ratio of the oil phase to the water phase for the emulsifiers you used.

Formula 1:
You used Milk Lotion Maker and Satin Cream Maker. According to the information, Milk Lotion Maker can emulsify up to 40% oil, requiring at least 60% water. Your formula has a total oil phase of approximately 42% and a water phase of only about 34% (excluding water-soluble ingredients, total water phase including water-soluble is ~53%). This high oil percentage relative to the water phase exceeds the capacity of Milk Lotion Maker, leading to instability and separation.

• Solution: To fix this, you need to adjust the ratio. Reduce the total oil phase to no more than 40% and increase the water phase (primarily water) to at least 55-60%.

Regarding your attempts to fix it:

• Adding more emulsifier (Satin Cream Maker, Light Cream Maker) to an already separated or unstable emulsion without re-processing the mixture properly (e.g., re-heating and high-shear mixing) often results in poor texture, such as the lumpy or curdled appearance you observed. Different emulsifiers also have specific usage instructions and compatibility requirements.
• Adding Xanthan Gum helps thicken the water phase and can improve stability, but it cannot fix a fundamentally broken emulsion caused by an incorrect oil/water ratio for the primary emulsifier system.

Regarding Question A (Using Oil Cream Maker with Triethanolamine):

• Oil Cream Maker is designed for emulsifying high oil content, so it could potentially be a suitable alternative. However, its specific usage instructions, including whether Triethanolamine is required and the recommended ratio, must be followed.
• Triethanolamine (TEA) is a common ingredient used for pH adjustment or as part of certain emulsifier systems. While generally safe in cosmetic formulations at recommended concentrations, it can cause skin irritation in some individuals, especially those with sensitive skin or if used at higher levels. You should check the specific usage guidelines and consider skin sensitivity.

Regarding Question B (Why lumpy with Light Cream Maker):

• As mentioned above, adding Light Cream Maker to an unstable emulsion without proper re-emulsification steps likely caused the ingredients to not mix properly, resulting in the lumpy texture. Emulsifiers need specific conditions (like temperature and mixing speed) to form a stable emulsion.

Formula 2:
You used Satin Cream Maker. This emulsifier can emulsify up to 25% oil, requiring at least 75% water. Your formula has 25% oil but only about 54.7% water (excluding water-soluble ingredients, total water phase including water-soluble is ~72.7%). Although the oil percentage is at the limit, the water percentage is significantly lower than recommended, leading to instability and separation.

• Solution: To fix this, you need to increase the water phase significantly to at least 75% of the total formula, or consider using a different emulsifier system or a combination of emulsifiers (like adding Milk Lotion Maker as suggested by the staff reply you received) that is suitable for your desired oil/water ratio.

Regarding the lumpy texture after adding more Satin Cream Maker:

• Similar to Formula 1, adding more emulsifier to an unstable system without proper re-processing prevents it from integrating correctly, resulting in a lumpy or uneven texture.

In summary, the main issue was using emulsifiers at oil/water ratios outside their recommended ranges. Always check the usage guidelines for each emulsifier to ensure the oil and water phases are within the specified limits for stable emulsification.

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