How to Fix Serum Separation

The primary cause of the separation is insufficient emulsification of the oil/silicone phase in your water-based serum. To address this, you should focus on increasing the effectiveness of your emulsifying and stabilizing ingredients.

Based on your formula and the properties of the ingredients, the separation is most likely due to the oil and silicone components not being fully emulsified and stabilized within the water-based serum. Your formula contains a significant amount of silicones (Cyclopentasiloxane and Silicone Gel) and LipidSoft™ Lite, which are not water-soluble.

While your formula includes emulsifiers like Satin Cream Maker™ and Light Lotion Maker, and a thickener like Xanthan Gum, their concentrations may not be sufficient to create a stable emulsion for the amount of oil and silicone present over time.

To fix this separation issue, you need to enhance the emulsification and stabilization system in your formula. Here are the recommended adjustments:

• Increase Emulsifier Concentration:

  • Increase the percentage of Satin Cream Maker™. This emulsifier is suitable for co-mingling with silicones and can handle a significant oil phase. Your current usage is 1.7%. Consider increasing this to 2.0-3.0%. This should provide better stability for the oil/silicone components.
  • You could also consider increasing the percentage of Light Lotion Maker. While your current usage is low (0.6%) compared to its recommended range (2-4%), increasing it, perhaps to 1.0-2.0%, in combination with increased Satin Cream Maker™, could further enhance the emulsion stability.

• Increase Thickener (Optional but Recommended):

  • Slightly increasing the percentage of Xanthan Gum (from 0.1% to 0.2-0.3%) can help increase the overall viscosity of the serum. While Xanthan Gum is not a primary emulsifier for oil/silicone, a higher viscosity can help suspend the oil/silicone droplets more effectively and slow down or prevent separation.

• Review Mixing Method:

  • Ensure you are mixing the oil/silicone phase thoroughly into the water phase containing the emulsifiers. Gradual addition of the oil phase to the water phase with continuous mixing is generally recommended for creating stable emulsions. Avoid excessive high-speed mixing that could potentially damage the polymer structure of emulsifiers like Satin Cream Maker™.

By increasing the concentration of your emulsifiers, you provide more capacity to bind the oil and silicone phases within the water, preventing them from separating. Adding a bit more thickener helps keep everything suspended.

Here is a summary of potential adjustments:

• Increase Satin Cream Maker™ to 2.0-3.0%.
• Consider increasing Light Lotion Maker to 1.0-2.0%.
• Consider increasing Xanthan Gum to 0.2-0.3%.

You may need to experiment with these percentages to find the right balance for your specific formula and desired texture, but increasing the emulsifiers is the most critical step to resolve the separation.