Application of Combinatorial Methods for the Identifi cation of Synthetic Hair-Conditioning Polymers

Cationic conditioning polymers have a role as deposition aids for depositing benefit agents such as silicone polymers and are used in shampoo formulations to provide improved combing properties, feel, and look. The objective of this work was to develop synthetic high-performance polymeric conditioning agents that exhibit conditioning performance as good as, or better than, the current commercially available polymers. We describe the application of high throughput methods to identify high-performance synthetic hair-conditioning polymers through using high throughput combinatorial methods for polymer synthesis and screening to prepare several hundred cationic polymer candidates. Shampoo formulations were then formulated with these polymers; hair tresses were treated with these formulations and tested via a parallel automated wet combing method. Three high-performing polymer candidates were selected for further evaluation, prepared on a larger scale and evaluated via a panel study. A (3-acrylamidopropyl)trimethylammonium chloride-vinyl monomer-based cationic copolymer is shown to exhibit hair conditioning efficiency equal to or greater than that of a high-performance cellulose ether-based polymer, SOFTCAT™ SL-5 (Polyquaternium-67) in a shampoo formulation.