Moisture-resistant hairstyling agent

1. NIMS and Nihon L'Oréal K.K. have developed a shape memory polymeric material responsive to humidity. This innovative material, when applied to a person’s hair and allowed to dry, serves as an exceptionally moisture-resistant hairstyling agent.

2. Hairstyles play a crucial role in personalizing one’s appearance and showing self-confidence. Demand for effective and functional hairstyling products has been growing. Weather-related humidity and sweat from exertion have long been a problem for hairstyle stability. Most currently available hairstyling products (e.g., hair sprays and gels) merely create a physical barrier on the hair’s surface, offering limited protection against humidity. There is a considerable expectation for the development of advanced, highly moisture-resistant hairstyling agents.

3. This research team recently developed a humidity-responsive shape memory polymeric composite designed as a moisture-resistant hairstyling agent. The material’s moisture resistance stems from the hydrogen bonding between polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and naturally occurring cellulose microcrystals (CMs), forming a robust PVA/CM network. These hydrogen bonds maintain the structural integrity of the PVA and CM components even when exposed to water molecules. The team compared PVA/CM composite coated and uncoated bundles of curled hair and found that the uncoated bundles uncurled and stretched more extensively (the bundle at far left in the photo) than coated ones after being subjected to 80% relative humidity for six hours. The team also found that the composites’ efficacy in maintaining the original curled hair shape improved with an increased ratio of CM-to-PVA (the four coated bundles in the photo). These findings indicated the material’s effectiveness in preventing the uncurling and stretching of curled hair in high humidity conditions. The material can be easily washed off using warm water (42°C) or shampoo.

4. This research elucidates the humidity-induced shape memory mechanism exhibited by the PVA/CM composite and demonstrates its potential for use as a humidity-resistant hairstyling agent.

5. This project was carried out by Koichiro Uto (Senior Researcher, Smart Polymers Group (SPG), Research Center for Macromolecules and Biomaterials (RCMB), NIMS), Mitsuhiro Ebara (Leader, SPG, RCMB, NIMS) and a L’Oréal Research and Innovation team.

6. This research was published in Advanced Materials Interfaces, an open access journal, on November 1, 2023.

1. NIMS and Nihon L'Oréal K.K. have developed a shape memory polymeric material responsive to humidity. This innovative material, when applied to a person’s hair and allowed to dry, serves as an exceptionally moisture-resistant hairstyling agent.

2. Hairstyles play a crucial role in personalizing one’s appearance and showing self-confidence. Demand for effective and functional hairstyling products has been growing. Weather-related humidity and sweat from exertion have long been a problem for hairstyle stability. Most currently available hairstyling products (e.g., hair sprays and gels) merely create a physical barrier on the hair’s surface, offering limited protection against humidity. There is a considerable expectation for the development of advanced, highly moisture-resistant hairstyling agents.

3. This research team recently developed a humidity-responsive shape memory polymeric composite designed as a moisture-resistant hairstyling agent. The material’s moisture resistance stems from the hydrogen bonding between polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and naturally occurring cellulose microcrystals (CMs), forming a robust PVA/CM network. These hydrogen bonds maintain the structural integrity of the PVA and CM components even when exposed to water molecules. The team compared PVA/CM composite coated and uncoated bundles of curled hair and found that the uncoated bundles uncurled and stretched more extensively (the bundle at far left in the photo) than coated ones after being subjected to 80% relative humidity for six hours. The team also found that the composites’ efficacy in maintaining the original curled hair shape improved with an increased ratio of CM-to-PVA (the four coated bundles in the photo). These findings indicated the material’s effectiveness in preventing the uncurling and stretching of curled hair in high humidity conditions. The material can be easily washed off using warm water (42°C) or shampoo.

4. This research elucidates the humidity-induced shape memory mechanism exhibited by the PVA/CM composite and demonstrates its potential for use as a humidity-resistant hairstyling agent.

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5. This project was carried out by Koichiro Uto (Senior Researcher, Smart Polymers Group (SPG), Research Center for Macromolecules and Biomaterials (RCMB), NIMS), Mitsuhiro Ebara (Leader, SPG, RCMB, NIMS) and a L’Oréal Research and Innovation team.

6. This research was published in Advanced Materials Interfaces, an open access journal, on November 1, 2023.