results to ‘dye’ for in the palm of your hand€¦ · straight, curly or wavy avoid surprises...

Dosing powdered dyes manually can compromise operator safety and

cause airborne contamination. A leading hair colorant producer is

achieving reproducible results with a hand-held powder-dispensing de-

vice designed to improve operator safety and eliminate clean-up time.

Results to ‘Dye’ forin the Palm of Your Hand

keen to establish a method for tracking the addition of ingredients in order to ensure that no component gets missed as this would require reworking the entire batch of dye.

Assessing the weighing processEssentially, operators weighed-in each powdered component until the formu-lation was complete. Components were weighed at every step to ensure the 2 % tolerance limit of each individual com-ponent was not exceeded. Operators checked the totals on the formulation printouts before dissolving and mix-ing the compounds to create the desired shade.

Evaluation of the company’s needs, using the support of METTLER TOLEDO’s Good

A hair color manufacturer’s shade palette depends on the precise formulation of in-gredients, including dyes, present in their recipes. For accuracy and repeatability, components must be dosed with pristine accuracy.

Handling aggressive chemicalsA world leading hair color producer tests colors repeatedly. Operators use spatu-las to weigh-in powdered dyes on bal-ances placed in specially designed safety cabinets. Such fine powders can easily become airborne, presenting inhalation and cross contamination risks.

Therefore, R&D and production divi-sions wanted to minimize the time spent managing spills and trying to prevent airborne contamination. They were also

Cosmetics, Fragrances, Food Ingredients

Analytical solutions in the laboratory

10News

2 METTLER TOLEDO Cosmetics, Fragrances, Food Ingredients 10

Publisher Mettler-Toledo AG Laboratory Division Im Langacher CH-8606 Greifensee, Switzerland

Production LAB Division MarketingGlobal MarCom Switzerlandwww.mt.com/lab-segmentnews

Subject to technical changes. © Mettler-Toledo AG 02/15 Printed in Switzerland.

Pow

der D

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Dosing Head

Precise dosing of free-flowing substances, with RFID chip for traceable records. Typical target dose > 0.5 mg

Sample Container

Flexible system for connecting typical sample containers to the dosing head

Weighing Practice (GWP®), identified an XP precision balance as the perfect match for their process accuracy require-ments. The balance also has the built-in SmartTrac dosing guide, which provides a visual aid to help operators dose each component to target. A printer and labo-ratory software fulfilled their demands for traceability and process security.

Safe, accurate manual dosingDespite using the correct balance, the problems surrounding the critical dos-ing step and the risk of contamination was not solved. For this, a complete new solution had to be designed; a handheld

powder dispenser. The Handheld Powder Dispenser (HPD) repeatedly doses small amounts of powdered substances while minimizing spillage risks and airborne contamination.

Today, the HPD brings convenience, safety and ease-of-use to the company’s manual powder dispensing work. As sam-ple containers can be easily connected to the dosing head, accurate dosing is now achieved without spills, improving safety and eliminating clean-up time. A separate dosing head is used for each dye, so there is no risk of cross contami-nation and the powdered dyes always re-

main enclosed to provide a higher level of operator safety. As it is handheld, HPD is also particularly convenient for use in the company’s safety cabinet, which also houses their new balance. With this new solution from METTLER TOLEDO, the company can easily achieve the shine and colors their customers desire.

Text: Julia Schenk Analytical Weighing Product Manager

www.mt.com/quantos- hpd-starter-kit

3METTLER TOLEDO Cosmetics, Fragrances, Food Ingredients 10

In their differential weighing applica-tion, the company first weighs a 6 mm long applicator stick. A target weight of 5 mg of scar-reducing cream is dosed onto the stick and the gross weight noted. The cream is then wiped onto an artifi-cial membrane for analysis. The stick is reweighed and the net weight used to determine the actual amount of cream dosed. However, with some of their ana-lytical results not as expected, the com-pany contacted METTLER TOLEDO to determine if their dosing method was providing them with the necessary level of accuracy.

Minimum weight determinationWhen weighing out small samples, the minimum weight value of a balance be-comes a critical factor, below which, the accuracy of the balance cannot be guar-anteed.

A UK company makes protein-based therapeutic creams for

treating scars and damaged skin tissue. The XPE26 microbalance

ensures accurate cream dosing with differential weighing.

Minimum Weight Proves Criticalfor Dosing Cream Samples

In addition to the minimum weight a safety factor is often applied in order to identify the correct balance for weighing in small sample volumes for a given ap-plication.

METTLER TOLEDO recommended apply-ing a safety factor of 3 to the minimum weight value of the XPE26 micro-analyt-ical balance, increasing it from 1.4 to 4.2 mg. With the XPE26, the company can now rest assured that their target sample weights of 5 mg meet their process accu-racy requirements.

Text: Simon Taylor Analytical Balances Product Manager

www.mt.com/micro

XPE26 micro balance


Sens

itive

Pip

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Which flavor components make your favorite food so

irresistible? What are the links between those com-

ponents and your sensory system? Recent experi-

ments are looking for the flavors associated with the

brain receptors that provide enhanced perception of

pleasure. For such sensitive research, the best pi-

petting techniques and pipettes are a must.

Treat Your Sensesto a Culinary Break

Research aiming to find the links be-tween flavor & fragrance compounds and the receptors in the human brain is still at its early stages. Yet, the expectations of the flavor and fragrance industry are high: A near future where compounds identified as ‘pleasure generators’ will be enhanced to stimulate the perception of delight in our brain.

Components’ volatility: The key to our sensesSeveral papers and books investigate the role of volatile and biogenic volatile or-ganic compounds found in foods. These two classes of compounds play an impor-tant role in the perception of odor and flavor and, ultimately, the enjoyment of certain foods. As an example, in the pa-per ‘Complexity of Coffee Flavor: A Com-positional and Sensory Perspective’, Su-narharum et al discuss the volatile and non-volatile components that contribute

to coffee flavor and the lack of data sur-rounding the link between flavor compo-nents and sensory properties of coffee.

Experiments conducted along these lines range from the very complex and low volume analysis of human receptors to determine how taste works, to the larger scale identification of flavor components in a food mixture for compositional analysis.

Low-volume pipetting experiments Human receptor studies are often carried out as very low volume experiments be-tween 10 and 50 µL and require low-vol-ume pipetting. Pipettes, therefore, need to be very accurate, and careful attention must be paid to user technique when pi-petting such small volumes.

Since human receptor studies involve mammalian systems, solution buffers,

and most associated liquids, are standard aqueous liquids and normal air displace-ment pipetting systems are recommend-ed. For experiments carried out in tripli-cate, multi-channel pipetting systems in-crease the throughput of the system and make the workflow more efficient.

Large-scale pipetting experimentsA different volume and liquid up to 10 mL may be used for the larger scale ex-periments involved in the formulation and analysis of a completed flavor. Given that many components may be organic, both air displacement and positive dis-placement pipettes can be used.

Such large differences emphasize the need for scientists to review their project requirements. It is important for scien-tists to understand the capabilities of their pipetting systems in order to be able to accurately transfer different liquid


volumes containing different properties. The table below provides a broad guide-line of the types of METTLER TOLEDO Rainin pipettes to be considered when working with a variety of samples.

When working with changeable compo-nents, such as flavors and fragrances, sample handling becomes crucial to ex-

periment accuracy and repeatability. By using the right pipette in the correct way, researchers get closer to unveiling the mysteries of our senses.

Text: Murray Anderson, RAININ Marketing Head

www.mt.com/rainin

The right pipette for your applicationVolume range Sample solution Manual Systems Electronic systems

High volume samples 20 - 50 mL Viscous, Organic Solvent, Extreme AutoRep S AutoRep E

20 - 50 mL Non-viscous, Aqueous, Ambient AutoRepS Pipet X

1 - 20 mL Viscous, Organic Solvent, Extreme AutoRep S AutoRep E

1 - 20 mL Non-viscous, Aqueous, Ambient Pipet Lite XLS, AutoRepS Pipet X, E4 XLS

Medium volume samples 200 - 1000 µL Viscous, Organic Solvent, Extreme PosD, AutoRepS AutoRep E

200 - 1000 µL Non-viscous, Aqueous, Ambient Pipet Lite XLS E4 XLS

Low volume samples 10 - 200 µL Viscous, Organic Solvent, Extreme PosD

10 - 200 µL Non-viscous, Aqueous, Ambient Pipet Lite XLS E4 XLS

Micro volume samples < 10 µL Viscous, Organic Solvent, Extreme PosD

< 10 µL Non-viscous, Aqueous, Ambient Pipet Lite XLS E4 XLS

Pipet Lite XLS+ family


Nowadays, natural protein or keratin treatment is used to straighten hair, stop it from

frizzing, and make it look shinier. In order to be fully aware of possible adverse effects

and to create a safe treatment, thermomechanical analysis is an excellent tool to charac-

terize the mechanical and physical properties of hair.

Straight, curly or wavyAvoid Surprises with Hair Products

Human hair is a natural fiber composed of keratin, a protein containing a high concentration of sulfur. The keratin fi-bers of the cortex, forming a regular structure of compressed long chains, make the hair resistant to tear. Elasticity and hydrophilic properties are also im-portant physical properties of hair. Hair treatments are commonly used to obtain a desired appearance, shape or texture. However, treatments can cause damage to the hair on a molecular level resulting in hair that looks dry, thin and weak.

Thermomechanical Analysis (TMA) measures the expansion and shrinkage behavior of materials as a function of time or temperature while they are sub-jected to a defined force. TMA can be very useful for characterizing the structure and physical and mechanical properties of hair. Such insights are essential for the development of innovative hair products.

Characterization of untreated and treated hairTwo different hairs, an untreated, natu-ral hair and a natural hair that had been subjected to a shine and bond hair treat-ment, were measured in tension mode up to 230 °C. The hair samples were com-pared with regard to shrinkage and ex-pansion behavior and thermal stability.

The untreated hair was washed with a cleaning shampoo, rinsed with water and hairdryer dried. The treated hair received a perm solution and a cream intended to increase the elasticity and stretching

properties of the hair. The hair was then rinsed in water and an enriched moistur-izing mask applied. This was later also rinsed with water. Lastly, the hair was dried and ironed to achieve voluminous straight hair with a smooth look.

Figure 1 shows the TMA curves of natu-ral, non-treated hair and cosmetically treated hair up to 140 °C and illustrates the shrinkage behavior of natural (blue curve) and treated hair (red curve). Both hair samples shrink up to about 110 °C due to drying. For natural hair, this amounts to about 0.7% of the original

Ther

mom

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nica

l Ana

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TMA/SDTA 1


sample length and about 1.0% for treated natural hair. We can conclude from this, that after the shine-bond therapy, the results show a small difference in the shrinkage value.

In Figure 2, the curves are displayed from 130 to 240 °C. They show that decompo-sition begins above 220 °C and that the hairs then rapidly tear. In this case, the mean value of the onset of melting cal-culated for natural hair was about 223 °C and for treated, natural hair 226 °C. The

thermal stability of the treated natural hair is greater than the non-treated nat-ural hair confirming the positive effect of this particular hair treatment.

Text: Matthias Wagner Thermal Analysis product Manager

www.mt.com/tma

Figure 2: Decomposition behavior of natural (blue) and treated hair (red).

Figure 1: Shrinkage behavior of untreated and treated hair.

Labo

rato

ry A

utom

atio

n Anne Swapped her Journal for LabX Be Next in Automating Your Worklflow

Anne is a Laboratory Manager whose lab performs a wide va-riety of analyses, mostly for quality control purposes. Recently, Anne was tasked with finding a way to automate these analyses, optimize operators’ time and ensure traceability and compliance with the rising regulations.

Anne concluded that the key needs were related to integration, either of instruments, systems, or reports, and automation of analyses, workflows, and data. She decided to adopt LabX in her laboratory to address these challenges.

Today, her instruments are connected, methods started with just one click and lab journals replaced with a secure database.

Smooth, error-free workflowOn the instrument, step by step guidance directs the operator. All work is ensured to be in accor-dance with internal SOPs

Full data managementAll information is automatically stored in a secure database to ensure traceability. See, store or print results in a customized report at any time.

Tailored set upDevelop and implement SOP com-pliant application methods ready for use on the relevant instrument. Define the roles of individual users and set-up the daily task list.

Power Your Bench with LabX® Software

Instrument connectivityLabX connects Mettler Toledo instruments to a single software. A unique interface means less training and more efficiency.

Learn more a bout LabX www.mt.com/LabX


Prod

uct H

ighl

ight

www.mt.com/LabXTitration

WorkbenchEach instrument connected to LabX has its own workbench. It offers all the components needed to run your daily tasks and the tools to monitor your sample series and results.

LabX® TitrationPower Your Titration Bench

Titration joins the LabX family. Connect your METTLER TOLEDO

instruments to LabX software and benefit from simplified op-

eration, efficient method editing with the graphical layout, fast

sample series modifications and tailored reports. LabX uniform

software and interface means less training and also helps to

increase your efficiency.

Single SoftwareLabX connects your titrators, balanc-es, density meters and refractometers, melting point instruments and Quan-tos systems. This means less training and also helps increase your efficiency.

Flexible set-upLabX can be installed as single soft-ware or as a distributed system. Build up the system that suits your need and have access from any PC to LabX and your instruments in the laboratory.


Worry-free weighingThe StaticDetect™ feature immediate-ly warns if any relevant electrostatic charge is detected. StatusLight™, a light on the balance’s terminal, indicates if the balance is ready for weighing.

Worry-free Weighingwith High Capacity Microbalances

Micrograms of valuable and expensive

materials are often weighed in the lab.

Dosing into a larger container can reduce

the minimum amount of sample weighed.

However, a high capacity balance is

needed in order to do so. The new XPE56

and XPE26 micro-analytical balances de-

liver high capacity coupled with minimum

sample weights as low as 1.4 mg to save

valuable material and still achieve maxi-

mum accuracy.

Safe for operatorsThe draft shield can be opened automat-ically for ergonomic left or right hand-ed dosing, helping to speed up weigh-ing processes. Draft shield and weighing pan fully dismantle for easy cleaning.

Secure dosingWith USP minimum weight as low as 1.4 mg and a capacity of up to 52 g, direct dosing into a tare container saves time and precious sample. The Ergo-Clips container holder makes dosing even easier.

www.mt.com/micro

www.mt.comFor more information

Mettler-Toledo AGLaboratory DivisionIm LangacherCH-8606 Greifensee, Switzerland

Local contact: www.mt.com/contacts

Know-How

Straightforward Routine TestingMinimize Risks and Costs

www.mt.com/RT-balances www.mt.com/RT-pipettes www.mt.com/RT-moisture

Testing laboratory instruments periodically is not only a way of complying with regulations but also the key to obtaining accurate and reproducible results.

Routine testing can be, however, a tedious and complex task. Our whitepapers provide you with rec-ommendations about when and how to perform a routine testing on your instruments – among other good practice tips!

Step-by-step guidance for eased instrument routine testing

Balances Pipettes Moisture Analyzers

results to ‘dye’ for in the palm of your hand€¦ · straight, curly or wavy avoid surprises...

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