Simultaneous determination of 6-methylcoumarin and 7-methoxycoumarin in cosmetics using three-dimensional excitation-emission matrix fluorescence coupled with second-order calibration methods

This paper reports a simple, rapid, and effective method for quantitative analysis of 6-methylcoumarin (6-MC) and 7-methoxycoumarin (7-MOC) in cosmetics using excitation–emission matrix (EEM) fluorescence coupled with second-order calibration. After simple pretreatments, the adopted calibration algorithms exploiting the second-order advantage, i.e., parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) and self-weighted alternating tri-linear decomposition (SWATLD), could allow the individual concentrations of the analytes of interest to be predicted even in the presence of uncalibrated interferences. In the analysis of facial spray, with the external calibration method, the average recoveries attained from PARAFAC and SWATLD with the factor number of 3 (N = 3) were 101.4 ± 5.5 and 97.5 ± 4.1% for 6-MC, and 103.3 ± 1.7 and 101.7 ± 1.8% for 7-MOC, respectively. Moreover, in the analysis of oil control nourishing toner, the standard addition method (SAM) was suggested to overcome the partial fluorescence quenching of 6-MC induced by the analyte–background interaction, which also yielded satisfactory prediction results. In addition, the accuracy of the two algorithms was also evaluated through elliptical joint confidence region (EJCR) tests as well as figures of merit (FOM), including sensitivity (SEN), selectivity (SEL) and limit of detection (LOD). It was found that both algorithms could give accurate results, only the performance of SWATLD was slightly better than that of PARAFAC in the cases suffering from matrix effects. The method proposed lights a new avenue to determine quantitatively 6-MC and 7-MOC in cosmetics, and may hold great potential to be extended as a promising alternative for more practical applications in cosmetic quality control, due to its advantages of easy sample pretreatment, non-toxic and non-destructive analysis, and accurate spectral resolution and concentration prediction.     

Determination of Antioxidants and Preservatives in Cosmetics by SPME Combined with GC–MS

A rapid and simple procedure for the determination of antioxidants and preservatives in cosmetics has been developed utilizing solid-phase microextraction combined with GC–MS. A silica fiber coated with polyacrylate provided the highest extraction efficiency. Detection limits in the range from 0.4 to 8.5 ng mL⁻¹ were obtained. Linearity is over a wide range from 1 to 2,000 ng mL⁻¹ with a relative standard deviation under 16%. Cosmetic from a local supermarket were analysed for antioxidants and preservatives to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. The concentration of antioxidants and preservatives determined was 20–1,218 μg g⁻¹ for methylparaben and 5–3,779 μg g⁻¹ for propylparaben.     

Single‐drop microextraction followed by in‐syringe derivatization and GC‐MS detection for the determination of parabens in water and cosmetic products

A single‐drop microextraction (SDME) method followed by in‐syringe derivatization and GC‐MS determination has been developed for analysis of five parabens, including methyl, ethyl, isopropyl, n‐propyl and n‐butyl paraben in water samples and cosmetic products. N,O‐Bis(trimethylsilyl)acetamide (BSA) was used as derivatization reagent. Derivatization reaction was performed inside the syringe barrel using 0.4 μL of BSA. Parameters that affect the derivatization yield such as temperature and time of the reaction were studied. In addition, experimental SDME parameters such as selection of organic solvent, addition of salt, extraction time and extraction temperature were investigated and optimized. The RSD of the method for aqueous samples varied from 8.1 to 13%. The LODs ranged from 0.001 (n‐butyl paraben) to 0.015 (methyl paraben) μg/L, and the enrichment factors were between 23 and 150.     

Determination of parabens in cosmetic products using multi-walled carbon nanotubes as solid phase extraction sorbent and corona-charged aerosol detection system

The potential of carbon nanotubes for the solid phase extraction of parabens in cosmetic products and the detection using a corona-charged aerosol detector (C-CAD) is presented in this work. The analytical procedure is based on a conventional solid phase extraction step for which 20 mg of multi-walled carbon nanotubes were packed in a 3-mL commercial SPE cartridge. Methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben and butylparaben were thus isolated and preconcentrated from the pre-treated samples and subsequently separated on a RP-C18 column using acetonitrile:water, 50:50 (v/v) as mobile phase. The analytical signals for the individual parabens were obtained using C-CAD. The experimental variables affecting the extraction procedure and the instrumental detection have been deeply studied. Limits of detection were in the range of 0.5–2.1 mg L⁻¹, while the linear range was extended up to 400 mg L⁻¹. The average precision of the method varied between 3.3–3.8% (repeatability) and 4.3–7.6% (reproducibility). Finally, the optimized procedure was applied to the determination of the target preservatives in a variety of cosmetic products with satisfactory results.     

高效液相色谱法快速测定化妆品中的防腐剂

建立了化妆品中4种4-羟基苯甲酸酯类防腐剂HPLC的快速测定新方法,该方法采用自制的C18柱(4.6mm×250mm,5μm)为分离柱,以甲醇-水(70∶30,V/V)为流动相,检测波长为254nm。结果表明,该检测方法比《化妆品卫生规范》(2007版)更简单,检出限远低于规范中的限量,达到0.0001—0.0003μg,而且实现了4种4-羟基苯甲酸酯类防腐剂的快速分离,4种防腐剂在10—300μg/mL范围内呈良好线性关系(r≥0.9998),平均回收率为98.7%—111.9%,相对标准偏差为0.19%—0.79%。方法操作简单,分析速度快、灵敏度高,适合日常化妆品防腐剂的快速分析测定。     

Simultaneous determination of l-ascorbic acid, ascorbic acid-2-phosphate magnesium salt, and ascorbic acid-6-palmitate in commercial cosmetics by micellar electrokinetic capillary electrophoresis

l-Ascorbic acid (LAA) can be used as a whitening agent in cosmetics. Because of its instability, some more stable derivatives have been developed to control melanin production, such as ascorbic acid-2-phosphate magnesium salt (AAPM) and ascorbic acid-6-palmitate (AA6P). To assess the quality of cosmetics, a micellar electrokinetic capillary electrophoresis technique (MEKC) was established for simultaneous analysis of AA and its two derivatives. Separation was performed with 10 mM borate (pH 9.5) containing 50 mM sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) at 20 kV. The detection wavelength was 265 nm. Several parameters, including borate concentration, buffer pH, and SDS level, were investigated. On method validation, calibration curves were linear over a concentration range of 150.0-1000.0 μM for LAA and 200.0-1000.0 μM for AAPM and AA6P. For intraday and interday analysis, relative standard deviation and relative errors were all less than 3%. Limits of detection were 70 μM for AAPM and AA6P, and 50 μM for LAA. All recoveries were greater than 95%. This method was applied to quality control of commercial cosmetics.     

Rapid determination of quinolones in cosmetic products by ultra high performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry

This study developed an improved analytical method for the simultaneous quantification of 13 quinolones in cosmetics by ultra high performance liquid chromatography combined with ESI triple quadrupole MS/MS under the multiple reaction monitoring mode. The analytes were extracted and purified by using an SPE cartridge. The limits of quantification ranged from 0.03 to 3.02 μg/kg. The precision for determining the quinolones was <19.39%. The proposed method was successfully developed for the determination of quinolones in real cosmetic samples.     

Ultrasonic nebulization extraction assisted dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction followed by gas chromatography for the simultaneous determination of six parabens in cosmetic products

A simple, rapid, and efficient method of ultrasonic nebulization extraction assisted dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction was developed for the simultaneous determination of six parabens in cosmetic products. The analysis was carried out by gas chromatography. Water was used as the dispersive solvent instead of traditional organic disperser. The experimental factors affecting the extraction yield, such as the extraction solvent and volume, extraction time, dispersive solvent and volume, ionic strength, and centrifuging condition were studied and optimized in detail. The limit of detections for the target analytes were in the range of 2.0–9.5 μg/g. Good linear ranges were obtained with the coefficients ranging from 0.9934 to 0.9969. The proposed method was successfully applied to the analysis of six parabens in 16 cosmetic products. The recoveries of the target analytes in real samples ranged from 81.9 to 108.7%, and the relative standard deviations were <5.3%.     

Multiresidue analysis of 59 nonallowed substances and other contaminants in cosmetics

A method was developed for the determination of 59 glucocorticoids, sex hormones, nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, and other contaminants in cosmetics simultaneously by ultra high performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry. Acetonitrile was used to extract the sample, and the mixed sorbents were dispersed for purification. With the optimal conditions, the optimized pretreatment processes led to no significant interference on analysis from an extremely complicated sample matrix, and the linear ranges of 59 analytes were 0–480.0 μg/kg with the correlation coefficients above 0.99 and the limits of quantification (S/N≥10) were 5–40 μg/kg. Statistical evaluation revealed that the average recoveries were in the range of 61.2–131.2%, and relative standard deviations were in the range of 2.0–22.8%, meanwhile the interday precision ranged from 3.8 to 21.8%. This method is simple, fast, and credible, and it can be applied to simultaneous screening and determination of various classes of substances under investigations illegally presented in cosmetic products, covering a wide diversity of polarities, and pK_a values.     

Engineering cosmetics using the Net-Average-Curvature (NAC) model

The hydrophilic–lipophilic balance (HLB) and the packing parameter have been guiding formulators for the last 70 years. However, these indicators look at the surfactant only without considering formulation conditions such as temperature, salinity, and oil hydrophobicity. The hydrophilic–lipophilic difference (HLD) consists of two empirical correlations that consider the entire set of formulation conditions, serving as a unified theory of hydrophobicity that connects to HLB, packing parameter, and phase inversion temperature (PIT). Target HLD values for cosmetic formulations are discussed. The HLD alone, however, does not provide formulation properties such as solubilization capacity, phase diagrams, or interfacial tension. To this end, the net-average curvature (NAC) model interprets the HLD as a dimensionless interfacial curvature, using this approach to predict formulation properties and phase diagrams. The use of the HLD-NAC model in the design of a skin cleansing formula is illustrated via a predicted ‘fish’ phase diagram required to identify preferred compositions.