(38f) Titania Stabilized Pickering Emulsions for Skin Care Products

Pickering Emulsions may be formed by adsorbing particles to the interface of the liquid droplet.  These particles increase stability of the emulsion by holding droplets further apart than the critical film thickness, at which the droplets coalesce.  A study of the use of silane-treated, hydrophobic, titanium dioxide particles to stabilize an isododecane in water emulsion, for the purpose of pigment (titanium dioxide) deposition on skin, was conducted. 

Results are shown for the formation of these isododecane in water Pickering Emulsion systems, using shear stress mixing.  Mixing method results were optimized to form emulsions without entraining air.  Also, results for the silane treatment of bare titanium dioxides particles, to increase hydrophobicity, are presented.  As a function of reaction time, the hydrophobicity of titanium dioxide particles can be tuned to force the particles to the interface of the isododecane droplets and water.  Furthermore, included is an overview of stability for the Pickering Emulsions.  By comparing the coalescence of the particle-stabilized isododecane droplets to naked isododecane droplets, it was observed the particle stabilized emulsion was stable towards coalescence, while the naked isododecane droplets coalesced rapidly. 

Using optical microscopy, these titanium dioxide stabilized emulsions are shown to form and enhance stability of the emulsion.