Creating a Lotion with Polysorbate 20 and Oil

You have a formula for a body lotion using Sweet Almond Oil (20%), Oxyresveratrol (5%), and Fragrance (2%), and you want to use Polysorbate 20 as the emulsifier to combine the water and oil phases and create a cream texture.

Polysorbate 20 is primarily a solubilizer, effective for incorporating small amounts of oil or fragrance into a water base, but it is generally not sufficient on its own to create a stable, thick cream texture with a high oil percentage like 20%. To achieve a stable lotion or cream consistency, you will need to add ingredients that help build viscosity and stabilize the emulsion.

A common and effective way to create a stable oil-in-water emulsion with a cream texture is to use a combination of a fatty alcohol and an ethoxylated fatty alcohol as co-emulsifiers and thickeners.

We recommend adding:

• Cetearyl Alcohol: This acts as a thickener and provides structure to the cream.
• Ceteareth-20: This is a strong O/W emulsifier that works well in combination with Cetearyl Alcohol to create stable emulsions.

For a lotion containing around 20% oil phase, you could typically use Cetearyl Alcohol at a concentration of 4-7% and Ceteareth-20 at a concentration of 1-3%. The exact percentages within these ranges can be adjusted to achieve your desired thickness and stability.

Example Usage:
You would typically heat your oil phase (Sweet Almond Oil, Cetearyl Alcohol, Ceteareth-20) and water phase separately to around 70-75°C. Add the heated oil phase to the heated water phase while stirring continuously until an emulsion forms. Continue stirring while cooling. Add the heat-sensitive ingredients like Oxyresveratrol, fragrance, and preservative below 40°C.

Important Considerations:

• Your formula includes Oxyresveratrol at 5%. The recommended usage rate for Oxyresveratrol 98% is typically 0.1-0.5%. Using a higher concentration like 5% might affect the stability, color, or feel of the lotion and may require additional stabilizers or specific formulation techniques to ensure the active remains effective and stable over time.
• You will also need to add a preservative to prevent microbial growth in your lotion, as it contains a water phase.

By adding Cetearyl Alcohol and Ceteareth-20, you can create a stable and pleasant cream texture for your lotion.