Cream Separation and Discoloration After Adding Vitamin C

Based on the ingredients you added in the second round, the most likely cause for your cream separating and changing to a yellowish-orange color is the Vitamin C (L-Ascorbic Acid).

Here's why:

• Instability of L-Ascorbic Acid: L-Ascorbic Acid is known to be unstable, especially in water-based formulations and when exposed to heat, light, and air. It easily oxidizes.
• Oxidation Products: When L-Ascorbic Acid oxidizes, it degrades into compounds that are often yellow or brownish. This matches the color change you observed.
• Formulation Stability: The degradation of Vitamin C can disrupt the emulsion system of your cream, leading to separation (the water phase separating from the oil/cream phase).
• Temperature Sensitivity: The fact that the cream stored in the refrigerator remained stable while the one at room temperature separated and changed color strongly supports the idea that a heat-sensitive ingredient is the culprit. Vitamin C oxidation is accelerated by heat.

While interactions with other ingredients are always possible, Vitamin C (L-Ascorbic Acid) is the most common ingredient to cause these specific issues (discoloration and separation) under these conditions. Snail secretion, anti-wrinkle agents, and Aloe Vera extract are generally less prone to causing such dramatic instability and color change on their own, although they could potentially influence the rate of Vitamin C degradation or affect the overall emulsion stability in combination.

Therefore, the addition of Vitamin C (L-Ascorbic Acid) is the primary suspect for the problems you encountered.