Nelson Brothers debuts co-emulsifier

NB5-2628 (right) offers an alternative to SMO co-emulsifiers (left) in explosive emulsification processes. Photo: Nelson Brothers

Nelson Brothers, a specialty chemical supplier of products and services, introduced its NB5-2628 co-emulsifier.

NB5-2628 aims to deliver the formation properties of a sorbitan monooleate (SMO) with greater synergy, control and stability, the company says. It presents an alternative to explosive emulsification processes that use SMO as a co-emulsifier. It also pairs rapid formation with bulk and packaged emulsion stability, with and without the incorporation of solid dopants.

“From a performance perspective compared to an SMO, NB5-2628 is similar in droplet size, viscosity and compatibility with different oxidizers,” says Keith Jordan, research and development manager at Nelson Brothers. “It is highly stable yet significantly more versatile, enabling it to be used as an SMO replacement in most formulations.”

Comparing the shelf life over an approximate 15-month testing period, Nelson Brothers says NB5-2628 showed an increase in emulsion stability over an SMO. In thermal cycling tests, NB5-2628 remained stable with very little crystal formation, whereas the SMO equivalent exhibited significant crystallization in the same conditions.

Nelson Brothers is a family-owned and -operated business founded in 1956. Today, it supplies specialty chemical products and services to the mining industry. The company serves customers around the world with polyisobutylene succinic anhydride (PIBSA), PIBSA-based emulsifiers, polyisobutylene succinimides and other related chemical derivatives.