The Emulsion Profiling of a Chlorinated Paraffin
Updated: Sep 8, 2020
Chlorinated Paraffins (CPs) are straight-chain hydrocarbons that have been chlorinated. Chlorinated paraffins are classified according to their carbon-chain length and percentage of chlorination, with carbon-chain lengths generally ranging from C10 to C30 and chlorination from approximately 35% to greater than 70% by weight.
How to formulate Chlorinate Paraffin in aqueous systems
All chlorinated paraffins are in oil form and to formulate them in aqueous system emulsifiers are required. Agrosurf BPE211-EH originally developed for emulsifying oils in agrochemical formulations has been found to perform as an extremely effective emulsifier with stability that lasts over 12 months.
Formulation guide:
To produce a stable Oil in Water emulsion (O/W) we prepared the following:
17.55 g of the chlorinated paraffin/emulsifier mix to 82.45g of water. The solution was mixed using low shear and was then tested for emulsion stability using a turbiscan and then for its particle size profile using a mastersizer 3000.
Turbiscan analysis
The turbiscan can measure the stability of emulsions over type by scanning a test sample to assess whether creaming or sedimentation is occurring or simply whether the emulsion produced is stable.
Below is the emulsion stability profile

Result: Destabilisation number = 3.92
The lower this number the better the emulsion. For poor emulsions, a number of > 30 denotes a poor emulsion. A number >80 means the emulsion has split.
Particle size analysis
Particle size is a good measure of emulsion quality. Particle sizes of less than one micron will generally indicate a good stable emulsion.
Below is the particle size profile: D90 = 0.161 microns

Particle size of chlorinated paraffin D90 result = 0.23 microns
Stability after 12 months
The oil in water emulsion that was prepared was left for 12 months to assess the long term storage stability. No creaming, sedimentation or separation was observed.

Conclusion
From a combination of turbiscan and particle size analysis, Agrosurf BPE211-EH is a very effective emulsifier for Chlorinated Paraffins for O/W emulsions.
Applications
Component in flame retardant formulations
Cutting oils and lubricants
Featured Product: Agrosurf BPE211-EH
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