The Science of Foam That Provides a "Comfortable and Mild Feel"

Abstract

Rich foam is one of the most important characteristics of cosmetic detergents. Although many studies have been performed on the visual and physical aspects of foam, such as "foamability" and "foam stability", the scientific origins of the sensory values that foam provides, such as "pleasant", “comfortable, fresh and mild feel", are not well understood. To understand what factors are at work when foam is applied and spread on hair and skin, we investigated the rheological properties of foam, focusing on its adhesion to several solid substrates with different properties. The results suggest that the fluidity of foam on solid surfaces is highly dependent on the properties of the solid surface and the thin water film on the surface.

graphical abstract