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Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2026-11-13 Origin: Site
Traditional surfactant emulsification systems often have shortcomings such as high irritation, insufficient stability in temperature and salt tolerance, and limited formula compounding when used in emulsion products such as daily chemicals and foods. Nanocellulose, as a type of one-dimensional nanobio-based particle emulsifier of natural origin, can be enriched at the oil-water two-phase interface as Pickering emulsification particles. It forms a continuous rigid fiber membrane through irreversible interface adsorption and tight arrangement. It relies on the steric hindrance effect to block the collision and aggregation of oil droplets, and can construct an oil-in-water emulsion with excellent storage stability at a low addition amount. This article elaborates on the interface mechanism, laboratory visualization verification, performance advantages, application scenarios and formula adaptation points, providing a material solution reference for the green and minimalist formula development of emulsion systems.
Emulsion is a dispersion system formed by mutually immiscible oil and water phases under the action of emulsified substances. It is widely used in cosmetics, personal care, food, coatings and other fields. The mainstream solution in the industry has long relied on small molecule or polymer surfactants to achieve emulsification by reducing interfacial tension. However, the surfactant system has inherent limitations: high addition brings potential irritation risks, and is susceptible to demulsification and stratification due to changes in pH , electrolytes, and temperature; some surfactants have poor compatibility with functional components, which restricts the development of minimalist formulas and clean label products.
Pickering emulsification is an emulsification technology that uses solid nano / micron particles to replace traditional surfactants. The particles are anchored at the oil-water interface by virtue of their own amphiphilicity, and rely on the physical barrier of the particle layer to achieve emulsion stability. Different from the surface-active molecular adsorption mode, they have the characteristics of strong stability, resistance to environmental disturbance, and low irritation. Nanocellulose is obtained by mechanical, chemical or biological dissociation of natural cellulose. It retains the degradable and biocompatible properties of cellulose itself. It also has a high specific surface area at the nanoscale and an adjustable surface hydrophilic and lipophilic balance. It is a highly potential Pickering emulsification base material.
This laboratory conducts visual verification experiments of oil-water systems. The experimental system uses edible vegetable oil as the oil phase and nanocellulose aqueous dispersion as the water phase. The test is carried out under high-strength homogeneous conditions without additional surfactants:
1. First add a certain amount of nanocellulose aqueous dispersion into a transparent sample bottle, and then slowly inject the oil phase; under standing conditions, the oil phase and the water phase are clearly separated due to density differences, forming an obvious oil-water interface, and the system does not emulsify spontaneously.
2. Shake the sample bottle gently, the two phases will disperse rapidly, the oil phase will be sheared into tiny droplets, and the nanocellulose particles will quickly migrate and be enriched to the new oil-water interface; after the shaking, the system will transform into a uniform and delicate milky white oil-in-water emulsion without rapid floating or oil separation.
This phenomenon shows that nanocellulose does not require the assistance of complex homogenization equipment and can play an emulsifying role at low addition levels; the core driving force of emulsification is not simply reducing the interfacial tension, but the adsorption and assembly behavior of particles at the interface. The emulsion after standing can maintain a uniform state for a long time, which intuitively reflects the anti-aggregation and stabilizing ability of the Pickering system.
The surface of nanocellulose is rich in a large number of hydroxyl groups. By modifying the surface or regulating the dispersion conditions, the amphiphilic properties that adapt to the oil-water interface can be obtained. When the oil and water phases are sheared and dispersed to form oil droplets, the nanocellulose particles spontaneously migrate to the oil and water interface, and irreversible adsorption occurs at the interface. Unlike surfactant molecules, which have - the characteristics of dynamic exchange between interface bodies and easy desorption, once the nanocellulose particles are anchored on the interface, the desorption energy is much higher than the thermal kinetic energy, and it is not easy to return from the oil droplet surface to the water phase body, ensuring that the interface particle layer remains intact, which is also the basis for the long-term stability of Pickering emulsions.
The nanocellulose adsorbed on the interface is closely packed and overlapped with each other laterally along the surface of the oil droplet, forming a continuous, dense fiber network film with a certain mechanical strength around the periphery of the oil droplet. This rigid membrane wraps around each dispersed oil droplet, directly blocking direct contact between the oil droplets.
When two oil droplets approach each other under the action of Brownian motion or external force, the nanocellulose fiber layer on the outer layer of the oil droplets first contacts, producing a significant steric repulsion effect , which offsets the van der Waals attraction between the oil droplets and prevents the droplets from flocculating, coalescing, and coarsening. The instability path of traditional emulsions is mostly the collision and merger of oil droplets, the particle size continues to increase, and eventually stratification and oil separation occur; nanocellulose Pickering emulsions physically block this process, greatly improving the shelf stability of the emulsion, and its ability to withstand temperature fluctuations and small amounts of electrolytes is better than ordinary surface-active emulsions.
Supplementary distinction: Nanocellulose exists in both the water phase body and the oil-water interface in the system. The fibers in the water phase will also increase the viscosity of the continuous phase, further slow down the floating and settling rate of oil droplets, and form a synergistic stabilizing effect with the steric hindrance of the interface film. It is a composite stabilization mechanism of 'interfacial film formation + continuous phase thickening rheology synergy'.
1. Low addition to assist emulsification, suitable for minimalist formulas, only a low amount of addition is needed to complete emulsification and stability. It can significantly reduce or even replace traditional emulsifiers, reduce the proportion of emulsifying components in the formula, and adapt to the current product development trend of no active ingredients, low additions, and clean labels in the beauty industry; at the same time, gentle shearing can form emulsion, reducing the energy consumption and process requirements of high-pressure homogenization at the production end.
2. Bio-based, low-irritation, environmentally friendly raw materials are derived from natural cellulose, biodegradable, and have good biocompatibility; there is no risk of skin irritation and eye irritation caused by traditional surfactants, and it is suitable for sensitive skin care products, infant and child care, etc.
3. The stabilization mechanism has strong anti-interference ability and relies on the physical barrier stability of the solid particle membrane, rather than relying solely on interfacial tension. It has a wider tolerance range for system pH , small amounts of electrolytes, and temperature fluctuations, and is not prone to sudden demulsification.
4. The materials are multifunctional and synergistic. One dose of multi-purpose nanocellulose has multiple functions such as rheology regulation, suspension stability, film formation, and moisturizing. The same component is not only responsible for Pickering emulsification and stability maintenance, but also can be used as a suspension carrier to carry pearlescent particles and active powders (such as golden silk, titanium dioxide, etc.) to achieve ' emulsification + suspension + thickening ' synergy and streamline the formula raw material list.
5. The shape of the emulsion is controllable. By adjusting the surface modification method, addition amount, and oil-water ratio of nanocellulose, the particle size and viscosity of the emulsion can be adjusted to suit different consistency needs from light and thin essence emulsions to thick facial creams and paste-like cleansers.
Suitable for oil-in-water system skin care lotion, essence lotion, body lotion, sunscreen lotion, hair conditioner, makeup remover and other products. Formula tip: Priority is given to adapting to oil-in-water systems; it is necessary to pay attention to the effects of oil phase types, electrolytes, and active additives on the adsorption behavior of particle interfaces; it can be compounded with a small amount of mild co-emulsifiers to further optimize skin feel.
It can be used in flavored emulsions, plant-based emulsion drinks, and sauce systems to meet the needs of food degradability and clean labeling.
Water-based coatings, agricultural emulsions, etc. require long-term dispersion and stable, low- VOC emulsion systems.
The nanocellulose Pickering emulsion system also has a certain adaptation boundary and is suitable for oil-in-water systems. Direct preparation of water-in-oil emulsions requires targeted surface modification; high-salt and high-ionic strength systems may affect the fiber dispersion state. In actual formula development, we can expand the adaptation boundary through fiber surface modification, dispersion process optimization, and compounding with a small amount of mild additives. During the R&D stage, it is recommended to conduct compatibility and accelerated stability (hot and cold cycles, centrifugal testing) assessments first.
Our company can provide of different specifications nanocellulose aqueous dispersions , provide sample testing and formula adaptation technical support to formula R&D engineers, and can assist in testing emulsion system stability evaluation, hot and cold cycles, centrifugal acceleration testing, particle size characterization and other tests. R&D teams in the daily chemical and food industries are welcome to contact us to jointly develop Pickering emulsification systems and polish customized solutions.
