Formulaction is unique in its offering of multispeckle-diffusing wave spectroscopy (MS-DWS) instruments. The technique, which is based on dynamic light scattering, analyzes the stability of concentrated or opaque products with no sample preparation. The firm also offers instruments that analyze stability with multiple light scattering. “We measure end-use properties like physical stability, gelation, recovery and drying on the native sample without sample prep and without stress,” Formulaction Sales Director Pascal Bru told IBO. Formulaction’s systems complement instruments that measure other physical parameters. For example, a customer who makes paint must measure pigment size but also needs to determine the stability and spreadability of the paint.

Formulaction was founded in 1994 by Gérard Meunier, a scientist at the French National Institute of Research. The company has grown 10% each year over the past decade and now has annual revenues of €3.5 million ($4.8 million = €0.72 = $1). Formulaction has 15 employees in France and two at its US branch, which was established in 2008. The company’s instruments have applications in the oil and petroleum, food, pharmaceuticals, electronics and cosmetics industries.

Formulaction’s systems utilize MLS or MS-DWS. The firm’s flagship and most popular instrument, the Turbiscan dispersion stability analyzer, employs MLS to measure particle size and concentration, which can be used, for example, to establish a skin cream’s shelf life. MS-DWS analyzes a product’s visco-elastic properties by measuring the rate of motion of particles and can determine characteristics such as spreadability of concentrated or opaque samples. The first instrument based on MS-DWS, the Horus, which measures film formation on coatings, was released in 2006. Three years later, the Rheolaser line of MS-DWS systems for microrheology was introduced. Microrheology uses micron-sized particles to measure rheological characteristics. The Rheolaser line includes the new Lab6 (see IBO 4/15/12), which can measure six samples simultaneously.

The accuracy and resolution of Formulaction’s instruments can reduce the time it takes to perform stability tests, Mr. Bru told IBO. Often, cosmetics formulators rely on tests like visual observation, which can require months. “We’re able to detect the destabilization of a sample at a very early stage,” he said. “Our instruments can see a phase of 40 ?m, whereas the naked eye can detect a phase of a few millimeters.” He said that it takes only a few hours for the scientist to know whether the sample is physically stable. “[The scientist] can quickly adjust the formulation, depending on destabilization mechanisms. So there is a huge advantage because the time to market for new formulations can be shorter, thanks to our instruments.”

Moving forward, Formulaction intends to broaden its technology offerings. “We plan to continue to innovate and propose new methods to characterize liquid dispersions, thanks to nondestructive, nonintrusive technologies,” Mr. Bru explained. These plans include acquiring a materials characterization firm. He cited firms serving the cosmetics, food, pharmaceuticals or electronics sectors that offer techniques for applications other than stability analysis as possible acquisition candidates.