Surface Treatment FAQ

When the powder has to survive a system it was not born to live in — a silicone phase, a W/O emulsion, a high-humidity wear claim, or a compact that has to press hard.

Untreated mineral powder is hydrophilic: it wets with water, disperses poorly in oil and silicone, and takes up moisture from the air. A treatment makes the surface lipophilic, which improves dispersion, reduces viscosity at the same loading, and makes the finished film more water-resistant.

If your formula is a simple O/W cream and the powder disperses without trouble, you probably do not need it. If you are fighting viscosity, dispersion time, or wear, a treatment usually fixes all three at once.

By what you are trying to fix — that is what separates them.

Dimethicone (SI) is the general-purpose choice: chemically bonded, shear-resistant, works over a wide temperature range, gives strong water repellency and disperses well in silicone oil, which suits W/Si systems. Triethoxycaprylylsilane is the standard for UV filters and pigments where you need a very hydrophobic surface without adding silicone feel. ITT (isopropyl titanium triisostearate) is for dispersion and a rich feel in anhydrous systems. DSG (disodium stearoyl glutamate) is for wear and water resistance. Lauroyl lysine, hydrogenated lecithin and magnesium myristate are for skin-feel effects more than for dispersion.

Start from the problem, not from the treatment name. If the problem is 'it will not disperse', SI or ITT. If it is 'it does not wear', DSG. If it is 'it feels dry', lauroyl lysine or lecithin.

Yes — to all series and particle sizes. That is stated on the page and it is the practical advantage of the range.

So Kingbornit 3002 SI, Kingsica 3028 SI, Kingruti 0205 SI, Kingtalfer LS-800 SI and Kingcovite 51 SI are the same base powders you already use, with the same particle size, carrying a dimethicone surface. You can move a formula from untreated to treated by changing the grade code, without re-optimising the particle size.

That matters more than it sounds: it means the treated version is a drop-in, and any difference you measure comes from the treatment rather than from a size change.

Very little, and what does change is the dispersion, which can look like a colour change until you know why.

The treatment is a molecular layer on the surface, so it does not alter the refractive index or the pigment's intrinsic colour. What it does change is how the particles sit in the film: a treated powder disperses more evenly, which usually reads as slightly stronger and more uniform colour at the same loading. In a TiO2 system this can show as a small increase in opacity.

So if your shade shifts after switching to a treated grade, it is usually an improvement in dispersion rather than a change in the pigment — re-check the loading before you re-tint.

Both make the surface hydrophobic; the silane does it without adding a silicone feel, which is why it dominates in UV filters.

Triethoxycaprylylsilane bonds directly to the surface hydroxyls and gives a very hydrophobic, relatively thin layer. In a sunscreen that means better dispersion in the oil phase at high solids loading, and less interaction with the organic filters. Dimethicone gives a thicker, more lubricious layer, which is better for skin feel and for press behaviour in a compact.

In practice: silane for sunscreen and pigment dispersions, dimethicone for powders where feel and pressing matter.

Three quick checks, in increasing order of effort.

First, the water float test: a treated powder floats on water and an untreated one wets and sinks. It is crude but it tells you immediately whether the surface is hydrophobic. Second, viscosity: at the same loading in the same oil, a treated powder gives a lower viscosity. Third, the instrumental route — TGA or elemental analysis to quantify the coating weight, which is what you use if you need a number for a specification.

For incoming QC, the float test plus a viscosity check catches almost everything that matters.

Yes, in the sense that the treatment agent becomes part of the ingredient declaration and must itself be permitted.

A treated powder is not the same regulatory object as the untreated one: the coating is an ingredient, so it appears on the INCI list and it has to be permitted for the product category in the destination market. Some treatment agents are permitted broadly; others have market-specific conditions.

We supply the INCI breakdown for each treated grade. If your regulatory team is checking a market's permitted list, give them the treatment agent as well as the base powder — that is where the question usually arises.

Usually not — start at the same loading and adjust on the result.

The treatment is a small weight percentage on the surface, so the delivered pigment or powder content per kilo is essentially unchanged. What changes is the viscosity: a treated powder typically gives a lower viscosity at the same loading, which some formulators use to raise the solids content rather than to keep the loading constant.

In a pressed powder, the treated grade usually needs slightly less binder for the same press strength, because the lubricious surface packs better. Again, start at the same level and adjust.

It depends on the powder, but the treated grades are what make high loadings possible in silicone-continuous systems.

In a W/Si foundation, treated TiO2 and treated iron oxides commonly run at 8–15% combined with the silicone phase, and treated fillers at 5–15%. Untreated powders at those levels would raise the viscosity past the point where the emulsion can be processed.

That is the whole commercial case for treatment in this system: it is not an improvement in feel, it is what makes the formulation possible at all.

Yes — the hydrophilic treatment exists for water-based and O/W systems where you want improved dispersion without making the surface hydrophobic.

It is the counterpart to the lipophilic treatments: instead of repelling water, it makes the surface compatible with the aqueous phase, which improves dispersion in a water-based slurry or a gel and reduces the settling that untreated fines show in water.

Use it when your continuous phase is water and you have a dispersion problem. Do not use it if you need water resistance — it works in the opposite direction.

25 kg for a stock treated grade; a treatment applied to a grade we do not normally carry is 100–200 kg, because the treatment line has to be set up and cleaned.

Lead time is 7–15 working days for stock, longer for a custom combination of base grade and treatment. Samples at 1 kg are available for any stock combination.

If you are evaluating a treatment, ask for the treated and untreated version of the same base grade. Comparing them against each other in your own base is the only way to see what the treatment is actually doing.