Say bar, syndet, or combo bar. A liquid-shampoo CMEA level is not a bar formula.
Solids change the job
In a bottle, CMEA thickens a micellar solution. In a bar, it is part of a solid blend that has to plod, stamp, and then lather in the hand. Hardness, slough, and lather are the three results, and they trade off.
The Esteem table’s soap wording is the permission to discuss these grades in bars. It is not a finished bar recipe. Send the base surfactant.
Lauric versus coco in a bar
Lauric monoethanolamide is the grade described for dense foam in soaps. Coco is the broader, often more plastic option. If the bar cracks, the amide level or the moisture is wrong. If the lather is loose, the chain length is the first conversation.
Combo bars that still contain soap have alkali. Confirm the amide is added where that alkali will not scorch it.
Processing
Stamp release and die wear are process issues. Mention them if the bar sticks, because a higher amide can change that surface.
Fragrance discoloration on white bars should be checked with the amide color specification.
| Bar | Amide emphasis | Watch |
|---|---|---|
| Syndet | Lather and plasticity | Moisture from a liquid amide |
| Combo | Lather next to soap | Alkali and color |
| Traditional soap | Superfatting is not CMEA | Do not rename soap |
| Shampoo liquid | Salt curve | Not a bar dose |
The amide is part of a solid, not a thickener
In a bottle, CMEA thickens a micellar solution. In a bar it has to melt into a mass that can be plodded and stamped, then lather when the bar is wet. Hardness, slough in the soap dish, and lather in the hand are the three results, and they trade off. A level copied from a liquid shampoo is not a bar formula, because the bar is mostly surfactant solids and there is no salt curve to land on.
Esteem lists lauric and coco monoethanolamides for soaps as well as shampoos. That wording is the reason to discuss these grades in bars. It is not a finished bar recipe. The base surfactant, true soap or syndet, still has to be named.
Lauric for lather, coco for plasticity
Lauric monoethanolamide is the grade described for dense foam in soaps. The narrow chain packs into a richer lather. Coco is the broader cut and is often the more plastic option when the bar cracks or will not plod. If the lather is loose and thin, start with chain length. If the bar cracks or sloughs, look at amide level and moisture before you add more lauric grade.
A water-rich EO-amide liquid, useful in a shampoo plant, changes plodder moisture and can soften the bar or leave a wet stripe. Bars usually want a flake that melts into the mix. Combo bars that still contain soap also contain alkali. The amide has to be added where that alkali will not scorch it and darken a white bar.
Stamp, color, and the soap name
A higher amide can change the surface that meets the die. Stamp release and die wear are process data, not a reason to call the amide a lubricant system. Mention them if the bar sticks. Fragrance discoloration on white bars should be checked against the amide color specification, because a dark flake shows when there is no liquid phase to dilute it.
Traditional soap superfatting is free fat in the soap, not CMEA. Do not rename a soap specification as an amide specification. Judge the trial by lather in use, not only by bar hardness on the day it is stamped.
How to Specify with Esteem
- State true soap, syndet, or combo.
- Name the surfactant solids in a syndet.
- Use lauric MEA when dense lather is the target.
- Confirm the amide melts and disperses in the process you run.
- Judge lather in use, not only bar hardness.
Lauramide MEA and CMEA are listed for soaps as well as shampoos on viscosity builders.