Table Of ContentChemical and Physical
Behavior of Human Hair
Fourth Edition
Springer
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Clarence R. Robbins
Chemical and
Physical Behavior
of Human Hair
Fourth Edition
With 111 Figures
13
Clarence R.Robbins
12425 Lake Ridge Circle
Clermont,FL 34711
USA
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Robbins,Clarence R.
Chemical and physical behavior of human hair / Clarence R.Robbins.– 4th ed.
p.cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-387-95094-X (alk.paper)
1. Hair. I. Title.
QP88.3 .R62 2000
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To my wife,Gene,for 41 years of hope,making every
day a day of joy.To my father,an example for me and
an inspiration to many.To my mother,who struggles
with her aches and pains and tries to be cheerful
in her nineties. To my daughter, Laurie, and her
husband,T.J.;to my son,Mark,and his wife,Kim;to
my brother, John, and his family; to my mother-in-
law,Daun,whom we all miss so much and my father-
in-law,Gordon;to Becky;to Ken and his family;and
to my many other relatives and friends who help to
make life meaningful for me.I would also like to ded-
icate this fourth edition to four colleagues who had a
very positive influence on my career in science. To
John Wright, who initiated my interest in chemistry;
to Bill Truce,who taught me to work as an indepen-
dent scientist;to George Scott,my mentor in keratin
fiber science;and to Charles Reich,who calls me his
mentor but added so much to my life and career in
hair science.
Preface to the Fourth Edition
Nearly seven years have elapsed since the writing of the third edition of
this book, and many advances in hair science have been made in that
interval. In addition, several new/unpublished electron micrographs have
been made available from three different sources. Dr. Sigrid Ruetsch
has kindly provided me with several micrographs from her hair fracturing
studies. I have selected several others from new literature, and from my
own files I have selected relevant micrographs that were never published
before. Many of these micrographs reveal details of hair damage from
grooming-type actions and from permanent waves,bleaches,and oxidative
treatments of hair,which are among the most important areas of current
hair research.
New studies on hair growth and structure have provided a better under-
standing of the epicuticle and hair protein structures,and the relationship
between hair proteins and genes is beginning to fit together in a more mean-
ingful manner.Growth factors are better understood,a second legitimate
hair growth product has been marketed,and a new active ingredient that
shortens the anagen growth period is being pursued in a product to help
control facial hair in women.New evidence exists today to view dandruff
as an inflammatory disease rather than as a disease simply of fungal origin,
and a new section on toxicity has been added with special focus on skin irri-
tation leading to a model that predicts relative skin irritation by shampoos
and other surfactant formulations. Also, evidence has been provided to
show how hair fiber shape can influence physicochemical actions in hair
fibers,and,thanks to the advice of a reviewer,new sections on hair straight-
ening and depilation have been added to this edition.I have also attempted
to summarize the status of the effects of the 55% VOC-CARB regulatory
action on hair sprays and the other CARB actions on other hair fixative
products.
This new edition is not only updated, but it also fills the gaps of prior
editions.Thus,it remains my hope that this book will continue to provide
a convenient starting point for hair research, to serve as a stimulus to
vii
viii Preface to the Fourth Edition
academia by offering examples of classical applied science in an area of
interest to lay persons and, as indicated in the first edition, not to be the
final word.
CLARENCE R.ROBBINS
Preface to the Third Edition
More than five years have elapsed since I completed the second English
edition of this book and fifteen years since the first edition. During that
interim,this book has been translated into Japanese and a Russian trans-
lation is well on its way.In addition,many advances have been made in both
our understanding of the structure of human hair,of the chemical and phys-
ical mechanisms of how cosmetics work,and in improved hair products in
the marketplace.
For example,the cuticle of human hair is largely a protective barrier that
does not participate directly in the tensile strength of human hair.The struc-
ture of the cortex is now known to consist of intermediate filamentous type
proteins that are surrounded by highly cross-linked sulfur rich proteins.The
intercellular regions are largely non-keratinous and have been demon-
strated to be highly important to the penetration and to the swelling behav-
ior of the fiber.The mechanism of chemisorption onto keratin fibers has
been further elucidated leading to better conditioning shampoos than ever
before, and although there are still many mysteries surrounding the bio-
chemical mechanism of hair growth,we are at least beginning to understand
some of the fundamental perplexities in this vast area of research.
Thus,this new edition portrays human hair from these new perspectives
and hopefully fulfills the original purpose: to provide a reasonably up to
date and complete account of the chemical and physical properties and
behavior of human hair.It is also my hope that this edition will provide a
convenient starting point for hair research and serve as a stimulus to acad-
emia by offering examples of classical applied science in an area of inter-
est to most lay persons—and as indicated in the first edition,not to be the
final word.
CLARENCE R.ROBBINS
ix
Preface to the Second Edition
Ten years have elapsed since I wrote the first English edition of this book,
and progress in hair science has made a second edition necessary. Since
1978,at least two new major scientific cosmetic journals have appeared and
four International Hair Science Symposia and one International Sympo-
sium on Forensic Hair Comparisons have been held.
Thus,continuing studies in hair science have been numerous in the past
ten years, so much so that a large proportion of the text had to be com-
pletely rewritten. In addition, a number of omissions that were kindly
pointed out by reviewers have been included in this edition,as well as cor-
rections sent to me by readers.
I sincerely hope that this new edition fulfills the original purposes: to
provide a reasonably up to date and complete account of the chemical and
physical properties and behavior of human hair,to serve as a convenient
starting point for hair research—and,as indicated in the first edition,not to
be the final word.
CLARENCE R.ROBBINS
xi
Preface to the First Edition
In this book,I have tried to provide a reasonably up to date and complete
account of the chemical and physical properties and behavior of human
hair.Chapter 1 describes the structure of human hair,from the microscopic
level down to the molecular level, Chapter 2 discusses its chemical com-
position, and Chapters 3 through 7 emphasize the organic and physical
chemistry of the reactions and interactions of hair with different cosmetic
or potential cosmetic ingredients.The last chapter describes the physical
behavior of hair before,during,and after cosmetic treatments.
The principal audience is obviously the cosmetic and fiber industries and
their suppliers,but it is my hope that the examples of physico-chemical con-
cepts involving reaction mechanisms and structure elucidation might stim-
ulate the academic world to become more actively involved in hair research
and perhaps to offer some of these examples of classical applied science to
inorganic and biochemistry courses.
In many instances,reference is made to the wool literature,because it is
more complete, and the two fibers are so similar. I have also taken the
liberty to express my own opinions and generalizations on many of the sub-
jects herein.I caution the reader not to be content with the generalizations
I have made,but to examine the original data for himself.The purpose of
this book is to serve as a convenient starting point,not to be the final word.
CLARENCE R.ROBBINS
xiii
