Microencapsulation of ascorbic acid for cosmetic by utilizing self-assembly of phase separated polymer

Abstract

Micrometer-sized polymer particles encapsulated ascorbic acid (vitamin C; VC) were successfully prepared by the three types of the self-assembling method, those are, phase separation and self-assembly of added polymer at the oil-water interface in emulsion, microsuspension polymerization utilizing the self-assembling of phase separated polymer (SaPSeP) method, and their hybrid method. In the stability study at 50°C for 2 months, the three kinds of capsule particles exhibited effective protection of VC from the interaction with other components in cosmetic consisting of water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion. The encapsulated VC was easily released from the capsule particles by an excess of water. These encapsulation methods will be useful for the stabilization of water-soluble substances in cosmetic consisting of W/O emulsion.