Cyclodextrin and surfactant encapsulation in the daily chemical industry

A large portion of the flavor contained in laundry detergents evaporates during production and storage. Adding a certain amount of cyclodextrin to laundry detergent can inhibit the volatilization of the fragrance. The degree of volatilization is largely related to the relative humidity of the air rather than the temperature. When the laundry detergent is dissolved in water, the surfactant molecules replace the flavor molecules with cyclodextrins, thus releasing the flavors, and the degree of substitution has a great deal to do with the chemical properties of the surfactant molecules and the steric factors. When the laundry detergent contains β-cyclodextrin-vanilla encapsulation, the flavor molecules are most easily substituted by the cationic surfactants, while the aliphatic ethylene oxide nonionic surfactants and quaternary ammonium derivatives do not sufficiently substitute the flavor molecules. Under normal conditions, cyclodextrin-fragrance encapsulants showed good stability when mixed with laundry detergents, with quantitative release of the flavor in water.

Cyclodextrins are used with surfactants in shampoos and kitchen cleaners to minimize skin irritation from surfactants. Methylated cyclodextrins are also used in soaps and shampoos.

Cyclodextrins can be used as de-foaming agents. Cyclodextrins can be added to laundry water to remove residual detergent due to the encapsulating effect of cyclodextrins. This reduces the number of washing steps and saves water.

Cyclodextrins can also be used to remove oil stains from fabrics. Since the encapsulation of the surfactant by the cyclodextrin increases the cmc of the surfactant, the amount of detergent used can be increased. A better approach is to use the detergent and cyclodextrin in separate washing steps, utilizing the cyclodextrin's own affinity for the oil stains to get rid of the oil stains.

The reduction of cationic surfactants with cyclodextrins also acts as a synergistic deodorizer.