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Microencapsulated essential oils in cosmetics I. T. Carvalho et al.

In situ polymerization is a chemical microencapsulation tech- process, affecting the success of the technique as well as the propri-
nique similar to interfacial polymerization. However, in situ poly- eties of final microparticles and its safe applications.
merization, no reactants are included in the core material. The
polymerization of a single monomer directly occurs on the particle
Encapsulated materials
surface [84]. Chung et al. [85] prepared microcapsules containing
thyme oil by in situ polymerization, using melamine–formaldehyde There are an enormous range of different materials, which have
pre-polymer as a wall material, and achieved 78% of loading effi- been studied and used for their suitability as encapsulating agents
ciency of thyme oil in microcapsules using 2% sodium laurylsulfate and its choice is crucial for properties and characteristics of
as emulsifier. obtained microparticles. Generally, the encapsulated materials
Polymerization technique is generally a fast and easy scale-up should follow certain criteria: be chemically compatible and non-
method [84], and provides high encapsulation efficiency. However, reactive with the core material; protect the active material of the
polymerization reaction is difficult to control [67] and requires environment adverse conditions (light, pH, oxygen, heat and other
large quantities of organic solvents, and monomers may be non- compounds present); have the release of desired properties of the
biodegradable and/or non-biocompatible [41]. encapsulated ingredient; slow down the diffusion of the active
ingredient to the external medium; capable of forming a cohesive
Microencapsulation techniques discussion film with the core material; and be resistant, flexible, impermeable,
Different techniques have been successfully used for preparing EO stable and easily handled [38, 49, 61, 66, 84, 93].
microparticles. Microencapsulation by spray drying is one of the Encapsulated materials can be natural, semi-synthetic or syn-
most common and cheapest techniques for producing microparti- thetic polymers [41, 48]. Table III shows a survey of illustrative
cles. This technique offers a high relation production rate/operating examples of wall materials used in microencapsulation processes of
costs, and resulting microparticles/powders are stable. Despite its EOs with cosmetic importance.
disadvantages, such as complexity of equipment and difficulty of Natural polymers are plant exudates and extracts. Although
controlling particle size, spray drying has been successfully applied they are generally non-toxic, biodegradable and abundant, their
to prepare encapsulated flavours since 1930s [69]. Coacervation is composition may vary. Natural shell materials for microencapsula-
other effective technique to produce EOs microparticles [59]. This tion can be polysaccharides (e.g. carrageenan, gum arabic), pro-
technology avoids the use of high-temperature processes to dry sol- teins/peptides (e.g. collagen, gelatin) and lipids (e.g. lecithin,
vent, which is an advantage for heat-labile active ingredients [86]. heparin). The most commonly used natural materials are the poly-
However, due to the high processing cost and complexity of proce- saccharides alginate and chitosan. Chitosan is a cationic polysac-
dure, coacervation is not used much in industrial scale. Jun-xia charide exhibiting b(1?4) linkages, obtained by alkaline
et al. 2011 [87] produced microparticles of sweet orange oil by deacetylation of chitin. It have many advantages such as availabil-
complex coacervation with soya bean protein isolate/gum arabic.
The microencapsulation efficiency and microencapsulation yield
obtained were, respectively, 85% and 68% for 20% core material Table III Representative list of shell materials used in microencapsulation
load. Comparatively, Yang et al. [88] achieved 82% of microencap- of essential oils with cosmetic significance
sulation yield for the same flavour as core material for 20% load in
the spray-drying method. Shell Core material: Microencapsulation
Fluidized bed is associated with the spray dryer for further material essential oil technique References
agglomeration of particles, as spray-dried powders usually have a
small particle size with poor handling properties. This technique
creates an additionally layer of molecules, giving a second coating GA and Pterodon emarginatus Spray drying [71]
maltodextrin Lime Spray drying [72]
to spray-dried products or products with a sensitive core, such as
Alginate Clove Emulsion [109]
EOs [89]. (Eugenia extrusion
Solvent evaporation microencapsulation technology is widely caryophyllata)
applied in industries for controlled release of active substances, Thyme
such as pharmaceutical industry. For EOs, insoluble compounds, (Thymus vulgaris)
Cinnamon
the simplest oil-in-water (o/w) method is frequently used in micro-
(Cinnamomum
encapsulation by solvent evaporation technique [81]. In contrast to zeylanicum)
spray-drying and coacervation techniques, in emulsification/solvent Chitosan Citronella o/w emulsification [110]
evaporation, neither requires elevated temperatures nor phase sepa- Gelatin Holy basil Simple [21]
ration-inducing agents, respectively. However, careful selection of coacervation
encapsulation conditions and materials is needed to yield high Ethylcellulose Rosemary Phase separation [15]
Lavender o/w emulsification [95]
encapsulation efficiencies and a low residual solvent content [78].
solvent diffusion
There are additional problems related to the safety of the operation Melamine Rosemary Modified in situ [14]
and environment [90]. formaldehyde (Rosmarinus officinalis) polymerization
Nowadays, in situ and interfacial polymerization is used to Lavender
microencapsulate a wide range of active agents within various (Lavandula hybrida)
polymeric shells [83, 91]. Nevertheless, this technique always Sage (Salvia officinalis)
PMMA Jasmine o/w emulsification [80]
involves using many organic solvents and non-biocompatible wall
solvent evaporation
materials [41]. A well-known problem is residual formaldehyde in
microparticle suspension after the polymerization [92]. The selec-
tion of a suitable wall material is critical for microencapsulation GA, gum arabic; PMMA, polymethyl methacrylate; o/w, oil in water.

© 2015 Society of Cosmetic Scientists and the Soci
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e Francßaise de Cosm
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International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 38, 109–119