Ashland introduces fixative polymer for hairspray

ASHLAND has launched Advantage™ 4910 polymer, a hair fixative with a long history of use in hairspray formulations, on a commercial scale for manufacturers of hair fixative and styling products, having fully incorporated the polymer into its production system.

 

With the addition of Advantage 4910 polymer to its portfolio of hair styling, conditioning and fixative products, Ashland now offers hairspray manufacturers all of the major polymers required to produce today’s consumer-desirable formulas. The legacy polymer, based on technology available for 30 years or more, known for lending lasting hold, stiffness and humidity resistivity to hair styles is included in more hairspray product launches than any other hair fixative.

 

Prior to Ashland’s introduction of this hair fixative polymer, only one manufacturer supplied octylacrylamide/acrylates/butylaminoethyl methacrylate copolymer. A chemical equivalent, the Advantage 4910 polymer may be used in virtually any aerosol base formulation, across all VOC levels. The polymer is demonstrated compatible in anhydrous, hydroalcoholic and 100 percent water systems.

 

“Aerosol hairspray as a styling format dates back more than 60 years, yet it remains the most popular,” said Dennis Hublitz, sales director, Ashland Specialty Ingredients. “The product category continues to advance and diversify to meet changing consumer and regulatory needs.”

 

“Including this polymer within our major portfolio of polymers for hairspray, such as polyvinylpyrrolidone-based polymers and methyl vinyl ether and maleic acid (PVM/MA) copolymers, allows us to deliver a dynamic set of solutions to manufacturers of spray products, from a natural, flexible hold, to stiff hold,” he added.

 

A range of polymers may also be used in conjunction with the Advantage 4910 hair fixative to enhance the performance attributes consumers require in today’s fashion-forward hair styling products around the globe. 

 

When used as a secondary fixative in select high- and low-VOC systems, attributes such as texture, level of stiffness and holding time may be enhanced to support specific product claims. The Advantage 4910 polymer is a highly formulation-flexible polymer proven compatible with a range of Ashland’s fixative technologies, such as Aquaflex™ FX-64 polymer, the Advantage™ LC A/S polymer and PVP/VA copolymers.

 

Ashland tested the performance of Advantage 4910 fixative polymer on hair at its Bridgewater, New Jersey, materials science laboratory. The company developed an evaluation tool, Dynamic Hairspray Analysis (DHSA), which measures the impact of mechanical and environmental stress applied to treated hair fiber assemblies. Additional tests, such as dynamic mechanical analysis, high humidity resistivity evaluations, trained panel evaluations and salon evaluations, also revealed insights that Ashland’s technical and marketing teams will use to support formulators working on the next generation of styling products.

 

“Our polymer synthesis, application science, materials science, consumer science and marketing teams have worked together to bring extraordinary value to a hair fixative polymer utilized in styling products for more than 30 years,” Mr. Hublitz said.

 

Ashland (NYSE: ASH) is working with product manufacturers to demonstrate how style creation and fixation, along with key attributes such as humidity resistance and long lasting hold, may be obtained when using the polymer along with one or more of its broad palette of styling and fixative polymers.