Mixing Technology in the Cosmetic Industry

Efficient Homogenization & Cooling

Efficient homogenization and a well-controllable cooling step after emulsification are key factors to guarantee a well-working mascara process with perfect and repeatable batch qualities. These topics are addressed by some of EKATO UNIMIX’s USP and help to produce a wide range of various mascara types no matter what scale of production capacity.

Types

• Volume
• Waterproof
• Cream
• Long lash
• Thickening

Throughput References

Strongly depends on formulation and site conditions

Process Steps – Their Challenges & How EKATO Handles Them

Addition of Material

• Addition of small material amounts without losses
• Small amounts can be added through the sight glass or a separate addition port on the lid
• Fast distribution of reactive powders without creating lumps
• Sub-surface addition with vacuum directly into high shear zone
• Axial and radial mixing for equal distribution inside the vessel
• Fast addition of large, non-reactive powder quantities without dust formation
• Sub-surface addition with vacuum via bottom valve for fast and dust-free intake
• Avoid air entrapment during addition
• Adjustable amount of false air during sub-surface addition
• Quick degassing after addition to prevent micronization of air in subsequent homogenizing steps
• Avoid fine powders of being dragged into the vacuum line
• Materials are mostly added sub-surface and therefore immediately mixed with the liquids
• Adjustable vacuum levels and opening angles of addition valves allow precise control over addition

Heating & Cooling

• Fast heating and cooling to significantly reduce batch time
• Effective mixing with PARAVISC agitator in axial and radial direction to shorten heating and cooling times
• Increased number of scrapers possible to further optimize heating and cooling steps
• Equal temperature distribution all over the product
• Effective mixing with PARAVISC agitator in axial and radial direction allows equal temperature distribution
• Two temperature probes (baffle & bottom) to verify ideal temperature distribution

Homogenizing

• Short homogenizing times even at large scale vessels
• Six different S-JET homogenizer sizes provide suitable pump rates for all vessel volumes
• Achieving small droplet sizes
• Small shear gaps between rotor and stator result in maximum shear rates that allow droplet sizes down to few microns
• Create narrow droplet size distribution for stable emulsion
• All product which enters the homogenizer is forced to pass the high shear zone between rotor and stator
• The PARAVISC agitator actively feeds the homogenizer by pushing down the product in the upper part of the vessel to avoid unhomogenized spots
• Internal and external homogenization allows constant exchange of product over the whole liquid column
• Adjustable shear rates to control energy input
• Wide range of homogenizer speeds possible to control shearing
• Minimum speed or interval mode is used for cooling to shorten cooling times

Discharge

• Fast discharge with adjustable shearing
• Variable S-JET homogenizer speed to adapt discharge flow and avoid over-shearing
• Overpressure possible to support discharging
• Achieving high yield
• Internal homogenization to avoid residues in the external recirculation line
• Scrapers actively remove material from vessel wall
• Overpressure can be used to discharge residues between S-JET homogenizer and outlet valve as well

High Throughput & Flexibility

Highest throughputs with maximum flexibility in regards to the product variety and process sequence are typically the most important objectives for manufacturers in the personal care branch. Often manufacturers deal with insufficient mixing and homogenizing capabilities and as a result need lots of production machines to achieve their production goals. Ensuring short batch times no matter what machine size with the PARAVISC’s axial and radial mixing and the wide range of homogenizer sizes, EKATO’s UNIMIX plant delivers solutions for every process and provides best possible productivity.

Throughput References

• 1000 L in 2 h (clean to clean 3 h)
• 20000 L in 8-10 h (clean to clean 11-13 h)

Process Steps – Their Challenges & How EKATO Handles Them

Dosing Liquids

• Fast addition of large liquid quantities
• Fast addition with vacuum into homogenizer liquid port or from utility line
• Accurate dosing
• Flow meters or load cells for precise dosing

Melting Fat Phase Ingredients

• Avoid energy losses during melting of low volumes
• Divided double jacket with two separate heating and cooling zones
• Fast dispersion of powders in melted fat phase
• S-JET Homogenizer allows immediate dispersion
• In a pre-phase vessel a fast running mizer disc is used

Phase Transfer and Emulsifying

• Avoid splashing and air entrapment
• Internal recirculation to pump product back into the vessel sub surface
• Immediate dispersion of incoming phase
• Incoming material added directly into high shear zone of S-JET homogenizer
• Realize short homogenizing times
• Various homogenizer sizes provide ideal pump rates for all available vessel sizes

Addition of Material

• Avoid air entrapment during addition
• Adjustable amount of false air during sub-surface addition
• Quick degassing after addition to prevent micronization of air in subsequent homogenizing steps
• Avoid fine powders of being dragged into the vacuum line
• Materials are mostly added sub surface and therefore immediately mixed with the liquids
• Adjustable vacuum levels and opening angles of addition valves allow precise control over addition

Heating & Cooling

• Fast heating and cooling to significantly reduce batch time
• Effective mixing with PARAVISC agitator in axial and radial direction to shorten heating and cooling times
• Increased number of scrapers possible to further optimize heating and cooling steps
• Equal temperature distribution all over the product
• Two temperature probes (baffle & bottom) to verify ideal temperature distribution

Homogenizing

• Short homogenizing times even at large scale vessels
• Six different S-JET homogenizer sizes provide suitable pump rates for all vessel volumes
• Achieving small droplet sizes
• Small shear gaps between rotor and stator result in maximum shear rates that allow droplet sizes down to few microns
• Create narrow droplet size distribution for stable emulsion
• The PARAVISC agitator actively feeds the homogenizer by pushing down the product in the upper part of the vessel to avoid unhomogenized spots

Mixing

• Short mixing times at all viscosities and vessel sizes
• Axial and radial mixing shortens needed mixing time even at high viscosities and largest vessel volumes
• Fast mixing of small material amounts which are added from top
• Curved blades of the PARAVISC agitator actively push down material lying on the surface

Deaeration

• Assure fast and full deaeration of the product
• The axial mixing characteristic of the PARAVISC agitator transports entrapped air to the surface even at highest viscosities
• Vacuum up to -950 mbar possible
• Prevent foam of rising too high
• Degassing in multiple steps
• Foam detector possible

Discharge

• Achieving high yield
• Internal homogenization to avoid residues in the external recirculation line
• Scrapers actively remove material from vessel wall
• Overpressure can be used to discharge residues between S-JET homogenizer and outlet valve as well

Main Task of a Softgel Mixer

The main task of a softgel mixer is to provide short mixing times and high reproducible quality with best possible yields. Besides that, lump formation is one of the main problems many softgel producers have to deal with. To tackle all these challenges, EKATO’s unique PARAVISC agitator allows an ideal axial and radial mixing while avoiding lump formation effectively. This improved mixing behavior also further optimizes the heat transfer and reduces heating and cooling times significantly.

Types

• Traditional gelatin shell based on animal gelatin (porcine or bovine)
  • Typical ingredients: gelatin, water, glycerin, sorbitol
• Alternative non-animal shell based on seaweed
  • Typical ingredients: seaweed extract, water, starch, glycerin
  • Vegetarian, ethical, or religious reasons
  • Improved performance: harder and more resistant to higher temperatures

Throughput References

• 1000 L in 1.25 h (clean to clean: 2.5 h)
• 2000 L in 2 h (clean to clean: 3 h)

Process Steps – Their Challenges & How EKATO Handles Them

Addition of Material

• Addition of small material amounts without losses
• Small amounts can be added through the sight glass or a separate addition port on the lid
• Fast addition of large, non-reactive powder quantities without dust formation
• Sub-surface addition with vacuum via bottom valve for fast and dust-free intake
• Avoid air entrapment during addition
• Adjustable amount of false air during addition
• Avoid fine powders of being dragged into the vacuum line
• Materials are mostly added sub surface and therefore immediately mixed with the liquids
• Adjustable vacuum levels and opening angles of addition valves allow precise control over addition

Heating & Cooling

• Fast heating and cooling to significantly reduce batch time
• Effective mixing with PARAVISC agitator in axial and radial direction to shorten heating and cooling times
• Equal temperature distribution all over the product
• Two temperature probes (baffle & bottom) to verify ideal temperature distribution

Mixing

• Short mixing times at all viscosities and vessel sizes
• Axial and radial mixing shortens needed mixing time even at high viscosities and largest vessel volumes
• Fast mixing of small material amounts which are added from top
• Curved blades of the PARAVISC agitator actively push down material lying on the surface

Deaeration

• Assure fast and fully deaeration of the product
• The axial mixing characteristic of the PARAVISC agitator transports entrapped air to the surface even at highest viscosities
• Vacuum up to -950 mbar possible
• Prevent foam of rising too high
• Degassing in multiple steps
• Foam detector possible

Discharge

• Fast discharge with adjustable shearing
• Variable S-JET homogenizer speed to adapt discharge flow and avoid over-shearing
• Overpressure possible to support discharging
• Achieving high yield
• Internal homogenization to avoid residues in the external recirculation line
• Scrapers actively remove material from vessel wall
• Overpressure can be used to discharge residues between S-JET homogenizer and outlet valve as well

Additional Information

• Traditional gelatin is shear sensitive – no homogenizer required
• No agglomerates: no filter needed
• Flexible system for different recipes and batch sizes (30-100% of usable machine volume)
• Many applications possible: drugs, minerals, vitamins, or supplements (e.g., Omega 3)
• License fees and the cost of raw materials and manufacturing are currently higher than the cost of traditional gelatin. Optimized processes like on EKATO equipment, however, narrows the cost gap significantly and make the non-animal based formulations very competitive.

The Production of Toothpaste

The production of toothpaste is a very shear-intensive process with a highly abrasive and complex product. Short homogenization times, extensive foaming, harsh CIP conditions are only a few of the challenges that need to be solved when it comes to toothpaste production. EKATO offers solutions for each of these challenges and is able to produce every kind of toothpaste within the required product specification, batch by batch.

Types

• Aqueous pastes
• Non-aqueous pastes
• Clear gel
• Silica based
• Calcium carbonate based
• etc.

Throughput References

Specified times may vary due to formulations and process conditions.

Additional cleaning after every 10th batch: ca. 2.5 h

Process Steps – Their Challenges & How EKATO Handles Them

Dosing Liquids

• Fast addition of large liquid quantities
• Fast addition with vacuum into homogenizer liquid port or from utility line
• Accurate dosing
• Flow meters or load cells for precise dosing

Addition of Material

• Addition of small material amounts without losses
• Small amounts can be added through the sight glass or a separate addition port on the lid
• Fast distribution of reactive powders without creating lumps
• Sub-surface addition with vacuum directly into high shear zone
• Axial and radial mixing for equal distribution inside the vessel
• Fast addition of large, non-reactive powder quantities without dust formation
• Sub-surface addition with vacuum via bottom valve for fast and dust-free intake
• Avoid air entrapment during addition
• Adjustable amount of false air during sub-surface addition
• Quick degassing after addition to prevent micronization of air in subsequent homogenizing steps
• Avoid fine powders of being dragged into the vacuum line
• Materials are mostly added sub surface and therefore immediately mixed with the liquids
• Adjustable vacuum levels and opening angles of addition valves allow precise control over addition

Homogenizing

• Short homogenizing times even at large scale vessels
• Six different S-JET homogenizer sizes provide suitable pump rates for all vessel volumes
• Achieving small droplet sizes
• Small shear gaps between rotor and stator result in maximum shear rates that allow droplet sizes down to few microns
• Create narrow droplet size distribution for stable emulsion
• All product which enters the homogenizer is forced to pass the high shear zone between rotor and stator
• The PARAVISC agitator actively feeds the homogenizer by pushing down the product in the upper part of the vessel to avoid unhomogenized spots
• Internal and external homogenization allows constant exchange of product over the whole liquid column
• Adjustable shear rates to control energy input
• Wide range of homogenizer speeds possible to control shearing
• Minimum speed or interval mode is used for cooling to shorten cooling times

Deaeration

• Assure fast and fully deaeration of the product
• The axial mixing characteristic of the PARAVISC agitator transports entrapped air to the surface even at highest viscosities
• Vacuum up to -950 mbar possible
• Prevent foam of rising too high
• Degassing in multiple steps
• Foam detector possible

Discharge

• Fast discharge with adjustable shearing
• Variable S-JET homogenizer speed to adapt discharge flow and avoid over-shearing
• Overpressure possible to support discharging
• Achieving high yield
• Internal homogenization to avoid residues in the external recirculation line
• Scrapers actively remove material from vessel wall
• Overpressure can be used to discharge residues between S-JET homogenizer and outlet valve as well