Hydrophobic Delivery and Deposition

The delivery of hydrophobic active ingredients from aqueous products is particularly difficult, especially in a micellar environment. In order to demonstrate the benefits of the IOTA NanoSolutions formulations, a nanodispersion of hydrophobic fluorescer was added to a non-fluorescent laundry powder. The enhanced IOTA NanoSolutions formulation was used to clean a series of fabrics ranging in hydrophobicity. The fabrics were compared with the addition of unprocessed powdered fluorescer to the unmodified wash liquor. The cleaning protocol included equilibration of the fluorescer in both cases and multiple rinse steps.

The fabrics were imaged using a UV lamp (Figure A) which showed increased fluorescence from the nanodspersion on all fabrics (IOTA NanoSolutions materials shown on right). Quantification of the fluorescence using laser imaging (Figure B) showed even deposition when using the IOTA NanoSolutions material (25x higher fluorescence on cotton; 12x fluorescence on polyester) compared to addition of unprocessed powdered fluorescer.

Figure A Unprocessed / IOTA NanoSolutions Processed Cotton Polycotton Polyester Nylon

Figure B Cotton / Polyester   Blank Powdered Fluorescer IOTA NanoSolutions Fluorescer

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