Substrate Analysis for Home and Personal Care Products

Intertek helps clients understand how products interact with intended substrates, using topographical and chemical analysis and analytical laboratory expertise. Substrate interaction provides product claim support data to prove efficacy and differentiate products in the marketplace. Typical example substrates include skin, fabrics, hair and hard surfaces. The work is often used to prove that a product has an advantage over a competitors formulation, or to determine the most effective formulation during product development.

Consumer product substrate analysis covers a wide range of applications and compounds:

• Skin analysis using Tape stripping to determine active levels e.g. aluminium
• Hair analysis – structure determination using microscopy to show damage or repair
• Saliva analysis and plaque analysis for ingredients such as triclosan  
• Fluoride, Zinc determined in a variety of substrates
• Infra Red Spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR) analysis of skin to determine presence of specific organic species
• Biopsy analysis of scalp tissue
• Hair dye analysis, deposition and ingress into the hair core
• Deposition of inorganic actives (e.g. silicones) on hair or fabrics using XRF  (X-Ray Fluorescence)
• Frizz and shine testing on hair samples to evaluate effectiveness of product