US 2020/0345598 A1Published application

Process for making transparent nanoemulsions comprising lauric oil

AssigneeConopco, Inc., d/b/a UNILEVER

InventorCongling QUAN

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Abstract

The invention relates to oil-in-water emulsion in which specific oils (e.g., lauric oils) are used in the oil phase while surprisingly maintaining excellent transparency. In one aspect, said emulsions comprise fatty acid in oil phase. The invention comprises an energy efficient process for making said fatty acid containing transparent nanoemulsions.

Claims18

Dependent claims

A process for making an oil-in-water nanoemulsion comprising:

1) an internal oil phase comprising (a) 3.5 to 40% by wt. nanoemulsion composition of a lauric oil;
wherein there is a minimum 5% total of lauric and non-lauric triglyceride oil, and wherein said lauric oil is an oil or oils where saturated C12 length fatty acid (12:0) comprises 30% to 85% of the fatty acid composition of the oil or oils and (b) 0.1 to 7% by wt. nanoemulsion of a fatty acid or mixture of fatty acids, wherein the fatty acid or mixture has melting temperature of −10° C. to 30° C.;
and
2) an external aqueous phase comprising:
i. 55 to 90% by wt. nanoemulsion of water and glycerol, wherein the ratio of said glycerol to said water is 2.5:1 and higher;
and
ii. 3 to 12% of a surfactant system comprising water soluble surfactants selected from the group consisting of anionic surfactants, amphoteric surfactants and mixtures thereof, wherein said anionic surfactant comprises 15% or more, of the total surfactant system;
wherein said composition has a turbidity of less than 45 NTU,
wherein said nanoemulsion is prepared by:
a) first preparing an intermediate concentrate emulsion containing:
i. an oil phase additionally comprising fatty acid or mixture of fatty acids having melting point −10° C. to 30° C.;
where said oil phase comprises 50 to 85% of the said concentrate emulsion and fatty acid or mixture comprises 1 to 15% of the said concentrate emulsion;
and
ii. an aqueous phase comprising a surfactant system, glycerol and water wherein the ratio of said glycerol to said water is 1:2 to 2:1, and said aqueous phase comprises 15 to 50% of the said concentrate emulsion;
iii. heating aqueous and oil phase to a temperature ranging from ambient to 60° C. separately;
and
1 a) mixing said aqueous phase and said oil phase by conventional rotor/stator high shear device at rotor speed of 3000 to 7000 rpm to form concentrate emulsion or
b) alternatively pumping both aqueous and oil phase simultaneously through a low pressure homogenizer at pressure of 13.8 to 34.5 bar (200 to 500 psi) to form concentrate emulsion;
wherein oil droplets formed in said concentrated emulsion have an average particle size, D[4,3], of 100 to 350 nm.
b) diluting the concentrate emulsion to oil range of 3.5 to 40% by wt. emulsion and to the ratio of glycerol to water ranging from 2.8:1 to 10:1;
and
c) passing through high pressure homogenizer at pressure of 413.6 bar (6000 psi) or less, wherein pass through high pressure homogenizer of step (c) is done only once and results in said final oil-in-water nanoemulsion having, subsequent to preparation of concentrate emulsion and dilution, a turbidity of less than 45 NTU.

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Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

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Abstract

A process for making an oil-in-water nanoemulsion comprising:

1) an internal oil phase comprising (a) 3.5 to 40% by wt. nanoemulsion composition of a lauric oil;
wherein there is a minimum 5% total of lauric and non-lauric triglyceride oil, and wherein said lauric oil is an oil or oils where saturated C12 length fatty acid (12:0) comprises 30% to 85% of the fatty acid composition of the oil or oils and (b) 0.1 to 7% by wt. nanoemulsion of a fatty acid or mixture of fatty acids, wherein the fatty acid or mixture has melting temperature of −10° C. to 30° C.;
and
2) an external aqueous phase comprising:
i. 55 to 90% by wt. nanoemulsion of water and glycerol, wherein the ratio of said glycerol to said water is 2.5:1 and higher;
and
ii. 3 to 12% of a surfactant system comprising water soluble surfactants selected from the group consisting of anionic surfactants, amphoteric surfactants and mixtures thereof, wherein said anionic surfactant comprises 15% or more, of the total surfactant system;
wherein said composition has a turbidity of less than 45 NTU,
wherein said nanoemulsion is prepared by:
a) first preparing an intermediate concentrate emulsion containing:
i. an oil phase additionally comprising fatty acid or mixture of fatty acids having melting point −10° C. to 30° C.;
where said oil phase comprises 50 to 85% of the said concentrate emulsion and fatty acid or mixture comprises 1 to 15% of the said concentrate emulsion;
and
ii. an aqueous phase comprising a surfactant system, glycerol and water wherein the ratio of said glycerol to said water is 1:2 to 2:1, and said aqueous phase comprises 15 to 50% of the said concentrate emulsion;
iii. heating aqueous and oil phase to a temperature ranging from ambient to 60° C. separately;
and
1 a) mixing said aqueous phase and said oil phase by conventional rotor/stator high shear device at rotor speed of 3000 to 7000 rpm to form concentrate emulsion or
b) alternatively pumping both aqueous and oil phase simultaneously through a low pressure homogenizer at pressure of 13.8 to 34.5 bar (200 to 500 psi) to form concentrate emulsion;
wherein oil droplets formed in said concentrated emulsion have an average particle size, D[4,3], of 100 to 350 nm.
b) diluting the concentrate emulsion to oil range of 3.5 to 40% by wt. emulsion and to the ratio of glycerol to water ranging from 2.8:1 to 10:1;
and
c) passing through high pressure homogenizer at pressure of 413.6 bar (6000 psi) or less, wherein pass through high pressure homogenizer of step (c) is done only once and results in said final oil-in-water nanoemulsion having, subsequent to preparation of concentrate emulsion and dilution, a turbidity of less than 45 NTU.

19 more elements