EMULSIFICATION EFFICIENCY RELATED TO THE COMBINATION OF MECHANICAL ENERGY INPUT AND SYSTEM FORMULATION AND COMPOSITION VARIABLES

Abstract. The reduction of drop size during emulsification may be favored by changing three types of variables: (1) the physicochemical formulation variables which are linked to the nature of the compounds [water, oil, emulsifier], (2) the composition variables that account for their relative proportions and (3) the variables which characterize the mechanical energy input conditions supplied by the stirring device. After reporting the general trends, the best compromise situations to attain a minimum drop size are located in the three dimensional formulation-composition-stirring space. Résumé. La diminution de la taille des gouttes durant l’émulsification est favorisée par trois types de variables: (1) les variables de formulation physico-chimique qui dépendent de la nature des composés [eau, huile, émulsifiant], (2) les variables de compositions qui rendent compte des proportions relatives de ceux-ci, (3) les variables qui caractérisent les conditions et l’énergie d’agitation. Après avoir décrit les tendances générales, on précise les endoits où on peut atteindre une taille de goutte minimale dans l’espace tridimensionnel formulation-composition-agitation. Key-words. emulsion, drop size, formulation, stirring, mixing efficiency Emulsions are found in many instances of industrial processes like polymerization, food procesing, paint manufacturing, petroleum production, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals etc (1). Emulsification is carrie