Matrix Powders FAQ

Start from the market, then pick the particle size. All three series behave the same in the formula — they differ only in how much soluble boron the powder can release.

Kingbornit 7000 (7006 / 7012 / 7015 / 7020) is held to soluble borate ≤0.02%, which is 200 ppm, and is the usual choice for the EU and US. Kingbornit 9000 (9006 / 9011 / 9015 / 9020) is specified to boron leaching ≤20 ppm — ten times tighter — and is the series we normally ship against Japanese requirements. Kingbornit 3000 (3002 / 500 / 3012 / 3015 / 3020) sits at ≤0.06%, with 3002 at ≤0.1%.

All three series share the same 6–20 µm size ladder and the same specific surface area at each size, so changing series does not change the skin feel. If your target market is still open, 7000 covers the widest range of customer questionnaires.

By how much oil you need taken out of the formula, and how dry you can afford the finish to feel.

Low oil absorption (Kingsica S060 at 60, TR070SI at 70) suits formulas that already contain enough oil-absorbing filler and only need texture. Mid range (2028 / 3028 / 5028 / 1228 at 90–100) is the general-purpose zone for pressed and loose powder. High values (S151 at 150, S201 / S202 at 200, S300 / S302 at 300) are for oil control and for matte, and they take up a lot of binder along with the oil.

The mistake to avoid is picking the highest number available. High oil absorption also means higher binder demand and a tighter, drier feel, so the right value is the lowest one that meets your oil-control target.

Rutile for almost everything, anatase only where you want a specific optical effect.

Rutile scatters light more efficiently and is the grade the industry builds coverage around, so it reaches the same hiding power at a lower loading. Anatase is softer, slightly bluer in undertone and has lower refractive efficiency, which is why it survives mainly in pressed powders where hardness matters and in applications where a cooler white is wanted.

Our range follows that split: six rutile grades (T-02, T-06, T-48, T-60, T-90, CR50) and two anatase grades (T-01, T-04). If you have no specific reason to choose otherwise, start with rutile.

Calcination drives off the water of crystallisation and sinters the platelets, which raises whiteness, hardness and oil absorption. Hydrous kaolin stays softer and is used where you want a clay that disperses easily and does not dull the film.

In a pressed powder, calcined kaolin contributes press strength and mattness; hydrous kaolin contributes slip and a smoother feel. That is why calcined kaolin shows up in oil-control and long-wear formulas rather than in products where glide is the priority.

Our range here is calcined only — the two 5000 and GL03 series.

Choose by oil absorption first, particle size second — the two move together but not perfectly, and oil absorption is what drives the skin feel.

LS-325 at 16 µm and oil absorption 40 is the slip grade: the most glide, the least oil uptake, the natural choice in loose powder and body powder where smoothness is the whole point. LS-800 at 12 µm and 63 and LS-1250 at 8 µm and 62 are the middle band most pressed powders are built around. LS-2500 and LS-6005 at 5 µm and 81 are the oil-control grades — highest surface area at 8, most mattifying, and the driest to the touch.

If you are choosing blind, start at 12 µm. It is the grade that offends nobody.

Natural for cost and for a slightly more 'real' lustre; synthetic for purity, whiteness and a cleaner regulatory story.

Wet-ground natural mica carries the natural trace elements of the mineral, which is why it needs a heavy-metal statement and, in some markets, additional documentation. Synthetic fluorphlogopite is produced from a controlled melt, so it is brighter and whiter, has a tighter particle size distribution, and its documentation is simpler. It costs more.

In a high-end eyeshadow or a product going into a strict market, synthetic is usually worth the extra cost. In a mass-market pressed powder, natural mica does the job.

Choose by the skin feel you are targeting, then check the coverage requirement.

6 µm (7006, surface area 9) has the highest surface area in the range and gives the most pronounced soft-focus and coverage, but slip is weaker and it is more prone to agglomeration. 12 µm (7012, surface area 4) is the balance point most pressed and loose powders are built around. 15 and 20 µm (7015, 7020, surface area 3 and 2) give the most slip and the easiest spreading, at the cost of soft-focus.

A practical rule: loose powder and blush tend toward 12–15 µm, pressed eyeshadow toward 15–20 µm where glide matters more than coverage, and products where you want pore blurring toward 6 µm.

Particle size is nearly the same; oil absorption is not. S201 is 7 µm at 200, S300 is 7 µm at 300. S202 is 5 µm at 200, S302 is 5 µm at 300.

So these pairs let you change oil absorption without changing particle size, which matters when you are tuning oil control and do not want the skin feel or the scattering behaviour to move at the same time. Going from 200 to 300 typically means more oil taken up, a drier finish, and more binder needed to keep the compact together.

If you are troubleshooting one variable at a time, stay within a pair. If you change size and oil absorption together, you will not be able to tell which one caused the result.

Smaller particles give more covering power per kilo but scatter less light back at you; larger ones give a brighter, cleaner white and easier wetting.

T-60 at 210 nm and CR50 at 250 nm and T-90 at 280 nm are the coverage grades — highest whiteness at ≥92, and what you want when the formula has to hide a dark base or you are reducing the TiO2 level for cost. T-06 at 360 nm and T-02 at 420 nm are the brightness grades, better in loose powder and in products where a visible whitening cast is acceptable or desired. T-48 at 400 nm sits at ≥90 whiteness and is the economical option in that size band.

One practical note: below roughly 250 nm, dispersion quality starts to matter as much as the grade itself. Undispersed fines read as dullness, not coverage.

2 µm if you want maximum oil absorption and a matte finish; 3 µm if you want easier dispersion and a less dry feel.

The finer grade has more surface per gram, so it takes up more sebum and gives a flatter, more powdery finish — the effect people describe as 'matte' in a compact. It also raises viscosity in a slurry and is harder to wet out. The 3 µm grade trades a little of that mattness for noticeably easier processing.

A common compromise is to use the finer grade in the powder phase and the coarser one where you need the batch to move.

The oil absorption figure — the size is a nominal mean, and the two grades are produced on different lines.

LS-2500 reports 8 µm with surface area 8 and oil absorption 81; LS-6008 reports 8 µm with surface area 6 and oil absorption 66. Same nominal size, different surface character, and the surface is what the formula responds to. A 15-point gap in oil absorption in a pressed powder is the difference between a mattifying compact and a normal one.

That is why we publish all three numbers rather than only the particle size. Choose on the oil absorption and use the size to sanity-check the feel.

Sericite is a fine-grained muscovite with a smaller platelet and a more matte appearance. It is the grade you use when you want the platy structure of mica without the sparkle.

The difference is optical, not chemical. Coarser mica reflects more and reads as pearlescent; sericite's finer platelets scatter more diffusely and read as soft and matte. That is why sericite appears in mattifying powders and in talc-replacement work, and mica appears in highlighters and eyeshadows.

Our range separates them explicitly: Kingcovite 5901 and 77 are the matte Replace Talc grades, 51 / 5501 / 57 are sericite, 25 is the general mica, and 71 / 75 / 74 / 6710 are synthetic fluorphlogopite.

A common starting point is 3–8%, adjusted upward for skin feel. Loadings above 15% are rare.

At low loading boron nitride mainly improves spreading and slip, and contributes little to compact strength. From roughly 5% the difference in hand feel becomes noticeable. Loose powders can go to 8–10%. Beyond that you are buying smaller and smaller improvements at a rising cost, and a high proportion of platy powder makes the pressed compact more brittle, so it chips more in transit.

If you are reformulating away from talc, the loading usually lands higher — see the replacement question below.

The fine, mid-absorption spherical grades — 2028 at 2 µm and 3028 at 3 µm — are the usual starting point, typically at 2–6%.

Soft-focus comes from the spherical shape and the pore-size distribution rather than from oil absorption, so a high-absorption grade is not automatically better at it. What the fine spherical grades do well is fill and blur without a heavy feel, because the spheres roll rather than stack.

Above roughly 6% you usually stop gaining blur and start losing coverage or slip, because the silica is displacing pigment and platy filler. If you need more blur than that, combine it with a platy soft-focus filler instead of increasing the silica.

Alumina alone gives photostability and dispersion; adding silica on top improves the surface's resistance to the photoactive reaction that TiO2 can trigger in a formula.

That matters when the TiO2 sits next to something that fades — a fragrance, an unstable dye, a vitamin. T-06 (360 nm) and T-90 (280 nm) carry the Al + Si coating; T-02, T-48, T-60 and CR50 carry alumina only. The two anatase grades are uncoated.

If you are formulating a sunscreen or a product with light-sensitive actives, choose a coated grade rather than adding a separate antioxidant and hoping it holds.