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A spotlight on research for the formulations sector

Formulated science

Essentially, formulation is the science of making products from raw materials in a defined and controlled manner. Formulation science and technology underpins product development in a wide range of industries from automotive, coatings and pharmaceuticals through to fast moving consumer goods and food.

Formulated products are everywhere in our daily lives and are as diverse as an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) dosed in a tablet or liquid for delivery to the patient or a specialist anti‑corrosion coating through to engine oils, laundry detergents, shampoos and toothpastes. They range from liquid, gel and powder formulations through to composites and nanomaterials.

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Optimising performance

Optimal product performance is a result of controlling formulation and this, in turn, relies on the optimisation of materials, technologies and processes, and understanding the role each component plays and how they interact in the product.

With these hugely diverse types of products, it is unsurprising that formulation scientists and engineers come from a range of diverse backgrounds including physical chemistry, analytical chemistry and colloid science, chemical engineering, biological and pharmaceutical sciences. One thing they all have in common is a driving need to understand microstructure and chemistry of formulations as variations in both can have a very significant impact on product performance.

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Drivers for formulation research

Sustainability issues, rising raw material costs and consumer preference are all strong drivers of change in product formulation and in order to maintain quality control or to develop new products, innovation is critical. A good understanding of the microstructure and chemistry of the product itself is vital for this to be successful.

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How Diamond can help

Diamond works with a number of companies, from diverse industrial sectors, on projects related to formulation. These projects can range from exploring the microstructure of formulations or the stability of formulations under varying conditions (mimicking supply chain conditions) or studying the impact of varying formulation materials or chemistries right through to investigating processing and final formulations.   

All of this is only possible by exploring the science behind the product, and here at Diamond we have advanced characterisation tools to enable this to be done at a molecular level.

Our dedicated industry team are all experts in different fields of synchrotron research techniques and work closely with our clients to fully understand requirements before recommending the most effective approach.  They can support you throughout your experiment, or indeed collect data on your behalf and provide a detailed report analysing the results.

We work within a highly confidential framework so we’re unable to share details of most of our work. However, below are a few examples of research we have conducted with formulation companies at Diamond.

Protecting the environment whilst maintaining efficient engine performance

In a collaborative project, Lubrizol and Corning Environmental Technologies conducted an extensive field trial, examining the effect of engine oil additive chemistry on gasoline particulate filter (GPFs) performance. They used  3D imaging ‑ a non‑destructive research method ‑ at Diamond to understand the location, morphology and relative concentrations of ash within the intricate GPF structures. 

Click to read the full case study.

Enabling Unilever hair care R&D project to move towards home use trial prototype

Rapid innovation in the hair care market, along with the increased complexity of products, makes it vital to understand the interplay between components and the product's microstructure and its dispersion properties.

Using SAXS at Diamond, scientists at Unilever were able to demonstrate the stability and suitability of a new technology in product formulations in both product and “in use” formats. 

Click to read the case study.

Controlling crystallisation in fuels and biofuels

The “freezing” of diesel fuel in winter has been a problem since its inception. Wax crystals nucleate and grow and block fuel lines and filters which can lead to vehicle failures. Additives are used to control these crystals but, over recent years, the use of biofuels (fatty acid methyl esters) within diesel blends has become increasingly common.  This can adversely affect the low temperature operability of the fuel.

Scientists at Infineum were able to use a range of advanced characterisation techniques at Diamond to understand the crystallisation processes and nucleation mechanism in biofuels.

Click to read the case study.

Characterising variants in clinical grade biopharmaceuticals

Medicinal products extracted from biological sources, called biopharmaceuticals or biologics, must be carefully produced to ensure that only high purity active material is generated. Biopharmaceutical manufacturing processes can have an impact on the amount of product‑related variants in the final clinical material. Understanding and controlling amounts of these product‑related variants is a major challenge in the development of biopharmaceutical products.

SAXS was used at Diamond to characterise and fully understand an ErA variant in solution and provide reassurance to regulatory bodies that the subtle changes did not hinder the activity of the drug. 

Click to read the case study.

The Industrial Liaison Team at Diamond

To find out more about formulations research at Diamond, or to discuss potential industrial applications, please complete an enquiry form or contact the Industrial Liaison team on 01235 778797. You can keep in touch with the latest developments by following us on Twitter @DiamondILO or LinkedIn.

Formulations case studies

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Fine tuning slip additives for industrial applications

Researchers from the University of Bristol and Procter & Gamble used X-ray reflectivity at Diamond to reveal how erucamide concentration affects surface structure—enabling better design of slip additives for diverse industrial applications.
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Enabling cleaner air through novel engine oil formulations

ULubrizol and Corning Environmental Technologies used X-ray tomography at Diamond Light Source to non-destructively examine ash accumulation in gasoline particulate filters—linking engine oil additive chemistry to filter performance and fuel economy.
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Porton Biopharma - BioSAXS

Porton Biopharma used SAXS at Diamond Light Source to investigate structural variants in clinical-grade Erwinase®. The study revealed a previously unidentified conformational variant, helping to reassure regulators of the drug’s integrity and activity.
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Unilever - hair care development

Unilever partnered with Diamond Light Source to fast-track a novel hair care formulation using SAXS on the I22 beamline. The collaboration enabled rapid microstructural analysis, helping the R&D team meet a critical milestone and advance to a home-use trial prototype.
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Infineum - oil additives

Infineum scientists partnered with Diamond Light Source to investigate crystallisation in diesel and biofuel blends. Using beamlines I22, I11, and I19, they explored nucleation and crystal growth mechanisms to inform the design of next-generation fuel additives that improve cold weather performance.
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Bath - Formulations

A collaboration between Unilever, Croda, Rockwood Additives, the Universities of Bath and Liverpool, and the National Non-Food Crop Centre explores how biodegradable cellulose can replace petrochemical-based thickeners in cleaning products. Using Diamond Light Source’s I22 beamline, researchers investigated gelation behaviour to support greener, cost-effective formulations.

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