Question: BTMS-25 and products not emulsifying

Kathy wrote to me to ask why a recipe similar to this one wasn't working for her. I knew right away that BTMS-25 was the culprit!

If you're using Incroquat BTMS as your emulsifier, please ensure you're using BTMS-50 - not BTMS-25 - as your emulsifier! BTMS-25 contains 25% behentrimonium methosulfate, the active ingredient in BTMS, whereas BTMS-50 contains 50% behentrimonium methosulfate. BTMS-25 can be used as a great conditioner, but it doesn't emulsify as well as BTMS-50. (Click here for some information on substituting BTMS-25 for BTMS-50 in hair care products!) If you're in doubt about what you're getting, check the INCI on your product, as some suppliers will alter the names of products to suit their company's theme or name.

To recap:
BTMS-50 is behentrimonium methosulfate (and) cetyl alcohol (and) butylene glycol.
BTMS-25 is behentrimonium methosulfate (and) cetearyl alcohol.

Click here for a post on INCI as it relates specifically to BTMS and here for how INCI names can make you a more awesome formulator!

This leads to a second question posed by Mya in this post: I am planning on making a conditioner with 25% natural oils and butters. My hair is very dry. I am going to be using Cupuacu butter, Argan Oil, and Avocado Butter. Do you think a combination of BTMS and Emulsifying Wax NF (Lipowax) would work? Last time I used BTMS alone and it did not turn out good. It was globby and part of the mixture was not emulsified.

If your product is not emulsified, there are three possible problems:
1. You aren't using the right BTMS. You're likely using BTMS-25 and not BTMS-50.
2. Your oil phase is too high for the amount of emulsifier you want.
3. You aren't heating and holding or mixing long enough.

The last two points are all about emulsification, and for it to occur we need a chemical emulsifier (the BTMS-50, in this case), heat (which is why we heat and hold), and something to mix it all together, such as a stick blender, Kitchenaid, etc (mechanical emulsification). If one of these things is missing, our emulsification will fail.

Unfortunately, there isn't a rule of thumb about how much BTMS-50 to use with specific oil phases, but my standard amount is around 7% for 15% oils, so for 25% oils, I'd look at something like 10% or so. The down side is that you might not want that much conditioning in your hair and 10% is really kinda wasteful when it comes to conditioners.

I'd like to suggest this - try making a 15% oil phase product with 7% BTMS-50 and 3.5% cetyl alcohol and see how you like it. Moisturizing dry hair isn't just about the oils; it's about the conditioning agents, humectants, and other things that can help make your hair less brittle and more lubricated. Also, consider using coconut oil. Studies have shown that..."coconut oil was the only oil found to reduce the protein loss remarkably for both undamaged and damaged hair when used as a pre-wash and post-wash grooming product...Coconut oil, being a triglyceride of lauric acid (principal fatty acid), has a high affinity for hair proteins and, because of its low molecular weight and straight linear chain, is able to penetrate inside the hair shaft." It's one of the least expensive oils and one of the greatest for our hair!

For more information on hair care products, click here for that section of the blog!