Unravelling formulation’s complexities
Colloid and Surface Chemistry Group: Secrets of formulation
11 May 2006, Belgrave Square, London, UK
 Is formulation a science or an art? For many years people would have said art. Yet in last July’s London meeting, Formula IV, there were many fascinating presentations covering scientific and technological aspects of formulation. Formulations are often metastable and are usually multi-component with final properties dependent on the process procedures used. Therefore the science of formulation remains a complex subject with many questions that are still unanswered and approaches to solving the problems kept within individual industries (hence the ‘secrets’).
An example of the scientific problem is illustrated in the above microscopic image which shows the complex phases that exist with just three simple components: colloidal particles, polymer and water, yet the science behind this is far from straightforward (try searching: three phase colloid coexistence). So how do you apply science to formulations containing four, five or more components and how do we establish that successful formulation is, unequivocally, ‘science’?
Insights into approaches by different industries to this complex world of formulation will be the subject of a meeting on 11 May to be held at SCI in Belgrave Square. The presentations will describe how formulation and colloid science are applied in different industries to solve the challenges in design, development and manufacture of today’s and tomorrow’s products. Expert practitioners from academia and industry will illustrate the scientific principles that lie behind some of today’s products: from the formulators’ design tools such as surfactants to the formulated products such as ice cream, illustrating how both the formula and process are important for successful formulation.
Many industries apply similar scientific techniques, perhaps in different ways, for solving the same generic issues. Learning how different industries apply commonly used techniques such as mechanical testing or rheology to optimise the performance of formulated products is something that many formulation designers could benefit from. Likewise, knowing how the properties of different surfactant chemistries can be harnessed to give the desired performance in a product could be useful to many of us. The aim of this meeting is to share knowledge from different industries. To encourage fruitful exchange there will be a wine reception before the evening talk, on the famously complex and tasty subject of ice cream, which will be followed by a conference dinner at a nearby restaurant.
The ‘Secrets of formulation’ meeting is organised jointly by the SCI Colloid & Surface Chemistry Group, the RSC Formulation and Science Technology Group and the RSC Colloid and Interface Science Group. For further details and booking click here.
Malcolm Faers
Colloid & Surface Chemistry Group
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