hair colour BASICS
Khushbu Singh

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1200BC
• Ancient greeks and
roman mixed Lead with
calcium hydroxide which
forms lead sulfite
nanoparticles in contact
with sulfur linkages on
keration protein.
• Natural dyes like henna
were also used.
1863
•In an attempt to produce a remedy for
malaria, William Henry Perkin created
the first synthesized dye (mauve) later
called mauvine.
•Chemist Dr. August Wilhelm von
Hofmann reports the dye properties of
PPD. His discovery leads to the birth of
the synthetic hair dye industry, and
PPD still dominates the field today.
1867
• London chemist E.H
Thiellay and Parisian
hairdresser Leon Hugot
demonstrate the
advantages of hydrogen
peroxide as a better
chemical way to lighten
hair than alkaline
solutions.

1907
• Eugene Schueller creates
the first hair dye technology
using PPD , becoming the
first commercially available
oxidative/permanent hair
color brand called as Aureole
latter called as "L'Oréal."
1932
• The Clariol Company is
established by Lawrence Gelb.
• Gelb's brand appealed to the
masses with Instant clairol oil tint
and hair colour bath and was
trending till 1950's.
1970
• Ad slogans like L'Oréal's
"Because I'm worth it"
showed a change in attitude
toward hair colouring along
with Hollywood as an
influence.
1980
• Invention of Demi-permanents closely
resemble permanent products, but the
level of active ingredients are reduced.
This prevents noticeable bleaching and
slows down the penetration into the hair
.
PRESENT DAY
• Today, hair dye products make up a
large percentage of the beauty
industry's revenue. "An estimated 70
percent of women in the U.S. use hair-
coloring products,"
• Scientist are working on new and safer
hair colouring mechanism .

Source: P&G Hair Colour research update

 1. Cuticle : Outermost layer of hair.
Comprised of overlapping flat, colorless cells . Contains no pigment
 2. Cortex : Cell layer between the cuticle and medulla.
Contains varying amounts of two natural color pigments which
determine the person’s natural hair colour.
 Eumelanin for hair shades from Brown to Black.
 Pheomelanin for hair shades from Yellowish, Golden and Red
colours.
Determines hair strength and texture. To permanently colour the hair ,
a coloring product must be able to penetrate the cuticle to deposit or
remove color in the cortex.
 3. Medulla
The hollow center or pith of the hair shaft. Contains no pigment.

Types of Hair Dyes
Temporary
Semi-permanent
Demi-permanent
Permanent
Oxidative
Non-oxidative
(safer to use )

Dye type Duration
Temporary Until one wash
Semi-Permanent 3 to 9 washes
Demi-Permanent 24 to 26 washes
Permanent Until hair is grown out

Temporary
Large pre-formed color molecules
adhere to the outer cuticle layer
Have high molecular weight and
deposits on the hair surface
without the capacity of
penetrating the cortex.
Can be removed easily by first
wash.
E.g : Acid Dyes: Anionic
characteristics Acid Yellow 23,
Acid Blue 9 .
Semi-Permanent
Contain Basic or cationic dyes with low
molar mass, which has a high affinity
for hair keratin and resists from three
to six washes
Cationic dyes exhibit excellent affinity for
damaged hair, because positive sites of
the dye molecule bind to negative sites
on the hair fiber.
Natural - Henna/Lawsone (2-hydroxy-
1,4-naphthoquinone ,BASIC RED 51, HC
BLUE NO. 15
Superdrug, UK
Centura Brands
L'Oréal paris, USA

Primary
Intermediates
Coupling
agents
Oxidising
Agent
Cuticle
Lifter

two components
Swelling the hair fiber, lifting of
cuticle
A surfactant/polymer
Formation of color
Thickening system ,acts as solvent for
dye components provides viscosity to
hold the product on hair.

• No ammonia
• Uses only Ethanolamine.
• Low volume of developer used.
• Hair retains its original form after 12-24
washes .
Demi-permanent
• Ammonia or ethanolamine
• High volume of developer .
• Complete oxidation of natural hair
melanin.
• Colour lasts until the growth of new hair.
Permanent

OXIDIZATION : Breakdown of melanin to lighten hair colour.
COLOURING : Small dye molecules penetrate into hair cuticles and polymerize to form large molecules.

Chemistry Involved