Novel soft touch silicone beads from methyltrimethoxysilane and dimethyldimethoxysilane using easy aqueous solution reaction

Conventionally, commercialized spherical silicone powders, such as silicone resin powder [INCI: POLYMETHYLSILSESQUIOXANE (PMSQ beads)] and silicone rubber powder [INCI: DIMETHICONE/VINYL DIMETHICONE CROSSPOLYMER (DVDC beads)], have been formulated into cosmetics for soft and smooth feeling. Due to the low crosslink density, silicone rubber powder shows soft touch and high oil absorption. However, it is too agglomerative to be formulated into powder foundation. In this work, we have developed the novel soft touch spherical silicone beads made from methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) and dimethyldimethoxysilane (DMDMS), using a surfactant, cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAC). The preparation procedure of the novel silicone beads requires only homogeneous mixing and includes no other complicated operations. The 29Si NMR and TG measurements indicate that DMDMS is randomly incorporated into the methylsiloxane network. The particle size of the beads can be controlled by the concentration of urea as well as by the stirring speed in the sol–gel reaction. By carefully adjusting these parameters, the size of the beads has been optimized for the use in make-up cosmetics. It was revealed by various evaluation measurements that the novel silicone beads exhibit unique characteristics, such as softness, low oil absorption, high transparency and light diffusion effects.