The latest innovation in fragrance/personal hygiene is here – the first-ever perfume delivery system to ensure that the more a person sweats, the better they will smell.

Researchers at the Queen’s University Ionic Liquid Laboratories (QUILL) Research Centre are calling its discovery a breakthrough in fragrance formulation technology. Queen’s University Belfast is a leading UK research-intensive university in the UK, located in Northern Ireland.

How does it work? More of its aroma is released when it comes into contact with moisture, which means a person will smell better as their sweat levels increase.

The delivery system’s development was explained in the press release, which says, “It was created by tagging a raw fragrance onto an ionic liquid (salt in the form of liquid) which has no smell. The ‘perfumed ionic liquid’ releases its aroma when it comes into contact with water, allowing more of the perfume’s scent to be released onto a person’s skin.”

But wait, there’s more…

This delivery system also has the ability to remove the bad odors that come from sweat. The press release further explains, “The ‘thiol’ compounds that are responsible for the malodour of sweat are attracted to the ionic liquid, attaching themselves to it and losing their potency.”

Commercial Possibilities?

This type of delivery system could potentially provide a new way to develop a number of different personal care products. QUILL researchers are currently working with a perfume development company to identify a number of products to develop.

QUILL’s Project leader, Dr Nimal Gunaratne, commented: “This is an exciting breakthrough that uses newly discovered ionic liquid systems to release material in a controlled manner. Not only does it have great commercial potential, and could be used in perfumes and cosmetic creams, but it could also be used in others area of science, such as the slow release of certain substances of interest.” 

The research was carried out by corresponding author Dr Nimal Gunaratne, Professor Ken Seddon and Dr Peter Nockemann, who are all from QUILL.

The full research article is filed on this site, in the Chemical Communications Journal, Issue 21, 2015, and described as: “Pro-fragrant ionic liquids with stable hemiacetal motifs: water-triggered release of fragrances.”

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