High Performance Conditioning Shampoo with Hyaluronic Acid and Sustainable Surfactants

Abstract

Recently, consumers have become invested in more natural and sustainable ingredients contained in personal care products. Unfortunately, cationic surfactants are still heavily relied on as primary conditioning agents in products such as conditioning shampoos because of their ability to cling well to the negatively charged surface of hair follicles. Additionally, sulfates are utilized as cleansing agents because they are highly effective and low cost. The objective of this study is to find a more sustainable formulation for a conditioning shampoo without compromising the desired wet combing, rheological, and surface activity properties. The systems which were investigated contained hyaluronic acid (HA) at a variety of molecular weights and concentrations, in combination with a surfactant, either acidic sophorolipid (ASL) or alkyl polyglucoside (APG), and varying the presence of sodium chloride. A Dia-stron was utilized to test the wet combing force, a rheometer recorded the viscosity at various shear rates, and a tensiometer measured the surface tension of the samples before a visual foaming study was conducted. Molecular weight and concentration seemed to have a large impact on wet combing force, as well as rheology, with the largest molecular weight and concentration producing the lowest friction coefficient and desired rheological profile. The addition of a surfactant significantly aids in the reduction in surface tension and increased foamability. Therefore, the optimal system to achieve the largest reduction in wet combing force, large viscosity with shear-thinning behavior, and relatively low surface tension with decent foaming is composed of 1% HA at 800 kDa, 10% ASL and 1% NaCl. This system shows a viable sulfate-free and silicone-free option that can achieve both conditioning and cleansing.

On Hair Care Physicochemistry: From Structure and Degradation to Novel Biobased Conditioning Agents

“…Yorke and Amin [ 66 ] prepared a new conditioning shampoo using a natural conditioning agent, hyaluronic acid (HA), in combination with a biosurfactant (synthesized by microorganisms) or biobased surfactant (manufactured from biobased sources). The formulations containing HA were prepared at a variety of molecular weights and concentrations in combination with a surfactant, either an acidic sophorolipid (biosurfactant) or an alkyl polyglucoside (biobased surfactant), and varying the presence of sodium chloride.…”

Hyaluronic Acid. Extraction Methods, Sources and Applications

“…Some consumers have become more interested in natural sources and sustainable ingredients due to their compatibility with hair follicles. However, sulfates continue to be used as cleansing agents due to their effectiveness and low cost [ 94 ].…”

Novelty of glycoside surfactant derivatives for sustainable development: A new perspective

“…compatibility and synergism of APG have APG them very popular molecules in the research. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12] Ordinary APG has some drawbacks such as poor foaming in hard water and poor solubility in cold water. These types of drawbacks can be improved by the derivatization of alkyl polyglucoside.…”