1. Industrial importance and principle of emulsion formation

1.1 Definitions

There are many situations where two immiscible liquids need to be compatibilized so that their mixture can be handled, administered and used without demixing. One of the most widespread techniques involves emulsifying one phase in the other, using mechanical agitation on the one hand, and an emulsifying compound on the other. The resulting formulation, an emulsion, can be described as a dispersion of droplets of one phase in the other. A distinction is therefore made between a dispersed phase (which constitutes the droplets) and a continuous phase (into which the droplets diffuse).