Commonly used oils and fats in skin care products

Commonly used oils and fats in skin care products—mineral oils and waxes, synthetic oils and waxes, raw mineral oils and waxes, and synthetic oils and waxes.

Mineral oils and waxes

The main components of mineral oils and waxes are high-grade alkanes above C16 extracted from petroleum. The representative raw materials are mineral oil, petrolatum, paraffin, etc., which are relatively cheap raw materials.

mineral oil

Mineral oil, also known as white oil and liquid paraffin, is composed of saturated components of paraffin hydrocarbons and naphthenes, and some also contain trace amounts of aromatic hydrocarbons. Pure mineral oil is a colorless, transparent oily liquid with no odor. It is stable to acid, light and heat, insoluble in ethanol, soluble in ether, benzene, petroleum ether, etc., and can be miscible with most fatty oils. The dosage of mineral oil in the cream is generally 2% to 35%, which has the functions of moisturizing, cleaning, and increasing oily feeling. At the same time, the production cost can also be reduced.

petrolatum

Petrolatum is commonly known as Vaseline. Its main component is a viscous solid that is removed from the residual oil left by the distillation of petroleum at atmospheric pressure and reduced pressure. The yellow wax cream from petroleum residue contains many impurities. The petrolatum used in cosmetics should be clear about its entire refining process and be able to prove that the obtained substances are non-carcinogens and have no peculiar smell. The refined petrolatum is odorless, translucent, soluble in benzene, ether, petroleum ether, insoluble in water, alcohol, and glycerin. Commonly used as a base material.

paraffin wax 

Paraffin, also known as solid paraffin wax, is extracted from certain distillates of petroleum, shale oil or other bituminous mineral oils. It is white or light yellow translucent with obvious crystal structure. According to the level of melting point, there are 48, 50, 52, 54, 56, 58 degrees and other grades.

Pure paraffin is waxy solid, white, odorless and tasteless. Paraffin is insoluble in water, has low solubility in alcohol and ketone, and is easily soluble in carbon tetrachloride, ether, carbon disulfide, various mineral oils and most vegetable oils. The higher the melting point of paraffin, the smaller the relative solubility and the more stable the chemical properties.

ozokerite

Oreside is a common base material in cream cosmetics. It is a white to slightly yellow solid waxy substance, odorless and tasteless. The melting point of ozokerite varies from 60 to 90 °C, it is insoluble in water, soluble in ethanol, chloroform, ether, petroleum ether, turpentine, carbon disulfide, chloroform, mineral oil, etc. The main components are naphthenic hydrocarbons and isoparaffins with long side chains above C25 and a small amount of linear paraffins and aromatic hydrocarbons. Has an amorphous appearance and is extremely lipophilic. The ozokerite wax is mainly obtained by refining the residue wax paste of petroleum purification and dewaxing as the raw material.

Synthetic oils and waxes

The representative raw materials of synthetic oils and waxes are generally stearic acid and its derivatives, cetyl alcohol, palmitate and polysiloxanes.

Stearic acid and its derivatives

Stearic acid is octadecanoic acid, the melting point is 69.6 °C, the boiling point is 376.1 °C, the relative density is 0.9408, and it is slightly soluble in water. Industrial products are generally white or yellowish granules or blocks, which are a mixture of stearic acid and palmitic acid, and contain a small amount of oleic acid, with a slightly fatty odor. The saponification product of stearic acid acts as an emulsifier in the cream, making it a stable white cream. Stearic acid is also the main raw material for the manufacture of emulsions. Stearic acid soap esters are more widely used in the cosmetic industry.

cetyl alcohol

Cetyl alcohol is also called cetyl alcohol and palmitol. Originally obtained by saponification of spermaceti, white crystals, density 0.811, melting point 49 ℃, boiling point 344 ℃. Cetyl alcohol is insoluble in water, soluble in ethanol, chloroform, and ether, but has a certain water absorption. After being mixed with an oily base (such as Vaseline) as an emulsion base, it can increase its water absorption. At the same time, a W/O emulsion base is formed after absorbing water under sufficient stirring. It plays a stabilizing and thickening role in the oil phase of the O/W emulsion base.

palmitate

Common ones are isopropyl palmitate (IPP) and isooctyl palmitate, which are one of the raw materials widely used in cosmetics in my country since the 1980s. Both are colorless, odorless and tasteless oily liquids that dissolve in Ethanol, ether, chloroform, etc., such raw materials have good mutual solubility for grease, low viscosity, good lubricity and spreadability.

Polysiloxanes

Polysiloxane refers to polydimethylsiloxane and its series of derivatives, which is an odorless, tasteless and non-irritating oily raw material. Polysiloxane has good lubricating properties, air permeability, stability, and has certain antistatic and anti-ultraviolet effects. A common polysiloxane ingredient in cosmetics is polydimethylsiloxane, also known as dimethyl silicone oil, which is a linear polymer with siloxane as the skeleton. It is a non-oily synthetic oil. Color transparent liquid or viscous liquid, with different viscosity according to the degree of polymerization, it is basically tasteless, insoluble in water and ethanol, soluble in organic solvents such as carbon tetrachloride, benzene, chloroform, ether, toluene, dimethyl Silicone oil has good thixotropy and is easy to spread on the skin. After smearing, it forms a hydrophobic film, thereby increasing the water resistance of the cream without producing a greasy feeling. It also has good compatibility with the skin, and is odorless and tasteless. It is non-irritating and has high safety. In addition, it is often used as a defoamer in the production process of cosmetics.