INCI Name: Lauryl Myristyl Amine Oxide
Lauryl Myristyl Amine Oxide surfactant exhibits good tolerance to electrolytes which permits improved performance of formulations containing this surfactant in hard water. Foaming properties are stable within a wide pH range of 5-12.
It is usually classified as a non-ionic surfactant, as it does not have any formal charges, and thus is compatible with anionic and cationic systems. These products are often used as replacement of alkanolamides (CDE) due to their mildness and improved conditioning properties.
Technically speaking, amine oxides are the result of the oxidation of tertiary amines. In other words, you have a tertiary amine and you oxidize it, usually with hydrogen peroxide, and you obtain the amine oxide. However, sometimes it is also classified as cationic, as under pH below 3 it is protonated ,and the nitrogen receives a formal positive charge. And some users also classify it as an amphoteric surfactant due to the strong ,dipolar moment between the oxygen and the nitrogen, almost as if there was a positive charge on the nitrogen and a negative charge on the oxygen. But formally speaking under neutral or alkaline conditions it does not present any formal charges, and therefore is a non-ionic
This amine oxide presents many interesting properties, such as providing a good viscosity response thus allowing efficient thickening of surfactant solutions (the strong dipolar moment helps to structure the surfactant phase), because of its foam boosting and stabilizing it is very efficient even in low pH solutions making it interesting in industrial cleaners as well , with an good resistance to oxidation and excellent skin compatibility
