Written by Norman Lowe
This blog covers two niche areas of laundry detergents for formulators: fine fabric (including wool) and travel wash.Continue reading
Fine Fabric Wash and Travel Wash
LANXESS at a Glance: Personal Care and HI&I Ingredients from HARKE UK & Ireland
LANXESS is a global speciality chemicals company, and through HARKE UK & Ireland we stock an extensive range of their ingredients for both personal care and HI&I formulators.
Auto-Dishwash Detergents: Ingredients and Formulation
Written by Norman Lowe, March 2026
An important sector of the detergent market is auto-dishwash detergents. These products started in the past as powders, moved to tablets, and now appear to be moving into multi-pocket water-soluble sachets. Formulations have developed; originally phosphate-based (e.g., Sodium Tripolyphosphate), which was removed by regulation change, and used a chlorine-based bleaching agent. Now we can say the following is the basic structure:Continue reading
Deodorisation: Cosmetic and Non-Cosmetic Applications
Written by Norman Lowe, June 2026
Malodours are a constant problem, whether associated with human or animal bodies, or non-cosmetic areas like toilets, drains, refuse tips, sewerage, rotting food, cooking smells, and smoking. This blog provides an overview of the systems and chemicals that can be employed to combat these odours.Continue reading
Repel-O-Tex® Crystal Premium: A New Grade for Cold Wash Liquid Laundry
Consumers are increasingly turning to short cycles and cold wash settings to save energy and extend garment life. Syensqo have developed a new grade from their Repel-O-Tex® range called Repel-O-Tex® Crystal Premium, which has been designed to offer improved cold wash performance in modern liquid laundry trends.
HI&I Trends 2026
As the household, industrial and institutional cleaning landscape continues to evolve, we take a look at the top 3 trends impacting formulations and ingredients in 2026, covering sustainability, smart cleaning technology and the growing popularity of wellness inspired scent profiles.
Oxone: Home Care Applications
Written by Norman Lowe, March 2026
This is the second blog on Oxone™; the first was an introduction to this stable peroxy bleaching powder. This blog goes to the next step, showing starting-point application formulations that HARKE UK & Ireland has developed.Continue reading
Air Care Trends 2026: What Formulators Need To Know
In this blog, we celebrate some of Carrubba’s candle fragrance trends for 2026 and look at what ingredients are shaping air care this year. Continue reading
Amphoteric Surfactants: An Overview of Chemistry and Applications
Written by Norman Lowe, April 2026
In surfactant chemistry, we discuss four broad types based on their ionic charge. The first three are: “anionics,” which provide a negative charge in solution; “cationics,” which provide a positive charge in solution; and “non-ionics,” which do not ionize in solution and thus carry no charge. The fourth type is the “amphoterics,” which possess both a negative and positive charge, for example:
R.N⁺(R²)2.COO־
This example features a quaternary nitrogen group (N⁺R₄) with a positive charge and an acyl group (COO־) with a negative charge within the same molecule. This is balanced at neutral pH and is known as the “zwitterionic form.”Continue reading
Introducing Rhodiasolv AIR L UP: A Safe, Upcycled Solvent for Air Care Formulations
The air care market is booming, from reed diffusers and scented candles to liquid electric plugins. In the UK alone, air care is valued at over £620 million (Mintel), and globally it is expected to grow by over 7% by 2034 (Fortune Business Insights). So we’re pleased to introduce an exciting new ingredient to air care formulators: Rhodiasolv® AIR L UP by Syensqo.