August 28, 2025 - As a special type of material with both inorganic and organic characteristics, silicone has become an indispensable core ingredient in the beauty and personal care industry due to its excellent hydrophobicity, UV resistance, and skin feel regulation. Since entering the personal care industry in the 1950s, its varieties have continually expanded, playing a key role in sub-sectors such as makeup, hair care, and daily care products.

Silicones are mainly divided into five categories, each with a specific functional focus. Silicone oils, the most widely used category, are liquid polysiloxanes at room temperature that can be modified through functional groups to expand their performance; silicone waxes are solid and can add moisturization without greasiness, offering synergistic benefits in sunscreen and hair care products; silicone emulsifiers can enhance emulsion stability, and new non-polyether varieties are gradually addressing the safety concerns of traditional raw materials; silicone film formers create long-lasting protective films, helping improve makeup smudge resistance and sunscreen SPF; silicone elastomers provide a velvety skin feel and extend the wear time of cosmetics.

The silicone oil family is further divided into nine categories, with dimethicone being just one of them. Methyl silicone oil can replace traditional oily raw materials, phenyl silicone oil meets sunscreen and radiation-resistant requirements, amine-modified silicone oil makes hair smooth and shiny, and quaternary ammonium salt-modified silicone oil also has antibacterial properties.

In addition, the four core categories of silicone oil, silicone wax, silicone elastomers, and silicone powders have different application scenarios due to differences in structure and form. From basic leave-in hair conditioners to high-end primers and loose powders, silicone is empowering the upgrade of beauty and personal care products from multiple dimensions, becoming an important support for industry innovation.