Chemical Forums
Specialty Chemistry Forums => Citizen Chemist => Topic started by: Jman on April 21, 2016, 04:45:06 AM
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I need to know why silicones like Dimethicone & in general silicon Polishes leave the skin feeling soft or affected even after the stuff has been aggressively washed off.
Is it a thin remaining film left or just the skin behaviour differently temporarily?
Second, the silicones are inert, why are cleaners like wax & grease remover & turps easy at getting this off if they are inert? Do the solvents physical lift the silicone off & keep it in suspension & then the detergent just washes it all away?
thanks
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Residual effect is probably just caused by residual agent.
If the skin stays extra moist after washing and then being allowed plenty of time to dry then something is continuing to reduce evaporation.
Your second question is a bit odd. Solvents and surfactants work by physical processes. They are generally chosen to be chemically inert in the application. If you are trying to dissolve something like silicone which is also inert then this is all the easier.
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Also,I don't understand what you mean by "inert", because you're using it to mean things I don't understand. Argon gas is "inert" ... to many chemical reactions. Gold is inert ... to typical mineral acids. But we can still use them or get rid of them when we want to. Polydimethylsiloxanes are just a class of chemical: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polydimethylsiloxane
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Residual effect is probably just caused by residual agent.
If the skin stays extra moist after washing and then being allowed plenty of time to dry then something is continuing to reduce evaporation.
Your second question is a bit odd. Solvents and surfactants work by physical processes. They are generally chosen to be chemically inert in the application. If you are trying to dissolve something like silicone which is also inert then this is all the easier.
Sorry, I'm not sure how to put it properly. But soaps & detergents almost can't clean silicones off, yet turps doe's it easy. While the turps is still wet, the soap will carry it all away very easy. I thought the reason silicones are so hard to clean off is because they don't react with detergents.
By inert I mean it didn't react & just resisted being dissolved in water & being taken away by the detergent.
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I suppose it is like any stubborn oil where there comes a point when it becomes too inefficient to try and remove it with surfactant and water and instead a solvent should be used. At some point we don't expect to be able to easily emulsify a long enough polymer, but we still should be able to dissolve it in some solvent unless it gets very long.