Syensqo’s sustainable and safer polymers for home care
Syensqo researchers have been pioneering new generations of polymers that enable safer and more environmentally friendly cleaning products for many years. Our Mirapol® Surf family of polymers for homecare applications were first developed in the early 2000s, and have been used by manufacturers in formulations for detergents of all kinds, from multi-surface cleaners to dishwashing products.
The great advantage these ingredients offer is that they improve the interaction between water and the surfaces being cleaned.
“This is called hydrophilization or water sheeting,” explains Max Chabert, Global Marketing Manager for Home Care in Syensqo’s Novecare business unit. “The polymers are a performance-enhancing active that bonds to surfaces, allowing water to form a homogenous film on them.”
This phenomenon makes all surfaces, whether glass, ceramic, metal or plastic, look shinier, while also ensuring they are less adhesive for oily substances and improving their affinity with water. The result? Greasy residues adhere less, freshly-washed containers lose their “greasy plastic” feel, and surfaces dry faster with fewer water spots. They also stay clean longer, enabling manufacturers to make claims such as “cleans without scrubbing”, “eliminates limescale” or “provides longer protection against water and dirt”.
New polymers for new demands
The performance benefits of the Mirapol® family of products ensure that they are highly valued by home care manufacturers, and as customer expectations have evolved so has our product offering. With consumers increasingly looking for non-toxic and sustainable products, Syensqo developed two new grades of this polymer line, designed to meet these needs: Mirapol® Surf-S 900 and Mirapol® SURF N.
Mirapol® Surf-S 900 is biocide-free. This means it doesn’t require the addition of any preservatives, as its molecular structure is stable enough to do without these often controversial chemicals. As a result, products formulated with Mirapol® Surf-S 900 are safer and compliant with key ecolabel standards.
“This is an innovation that we developed in 2018, and it’s a grade that’s particularly well suited for acidic products, such as bathroom detergents,” says Max. “As it’s more resistant, it also stays on surfaces longer, enabling what we call “continuous cleaning” of hard surfaces, such as ceramic, glass and metal.”
Mirapol® SURF N, on the other hand, is naturally-derived from plant-based sources while maintaining the same high performance as synthetic polymers.
“In home care, no one was talking about sustainable ingredients a decade ago, but today our customers are requesting biodegradable solutions” explains Max. “The other advantage this product offers is that it’s a 100% active ingredient, so very low dosages are required in formulations.”
Mirapol® SURF N is specifically designed for modern surfaces, such as plastic countertops, containers and whiteboards.
With one polymer suited for hard surfaces and the other optimized for softer ones, Syensqo teams recommend that manufacturers combine both. The two grades are fully compatible, helping manufacturers formulate safer, more sustainable and more efficient cleaning products for all types of surfaces.
