INTRODUCTION

As a  hexahydric alcohol, sorbitol is a member of the polyhydric alcohol family the lowest of which are ethylene glycol and glycerol. The close chemical relationship between Sorbitol and the lower alcohols (like glycol and glycerol) is responsible for the similarity in their general physical properties and applications in industrial technology.

USES

In general, hexitols and their derivates particularly sorbitol, are used in diverse industries viz. pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, toothpastes, cigarette, foods, textiles, adhesives, cigarette, foods, confectionery, printing ink, etc. One of the major uses of Sorbitol is as an humectant and conditioning agent. Many products under day-to-day atmospheric changes require the addition of a humectant to assist them to retain their freshness, softness and flexibility and to maintain ideal manufacturing conditions.

To summarise, the principal advantages which Sorbitol exhibits over other polyols are -    

• Sorbitol GIVES UP water very slowly to a drier atmosphere.
• Sorbitol TAKES UP water very slowly from a humid atmosphere. 

CONFECTIONERY :

In candy manufacture, Sorbitol is used together with sugar to increase shelf-life. The function of Sorbitol is to retard the solidification of sugar often associated with staleness in candy. It also helps to improve softess, taste and texture. In butter creams, an additional benefit is enhanced flavour. Sorbitol may be used in diabetic chocolates. Sorbitol is used as a humectant and softner in shredded coconut, its decided advantage over sugar being that the darkening of the product does not occur. A small quantity of 70 % Sorbitol added to peanut butter has been shown to reduce dryness and crumbleness and improve spreadability.

TEXTILES :

Sorbitol functions in textile in applications basically as a dispensing agent, humectant, bodying agentand sequestering agent. In printing, a paste of 2 % to 3 %  Sorbitol liquid 70 % (on the weight of the gum in the dye paste) prevents livering of the paste. Improves brightness & intensity of colour assists penetrations, prevents bleeding and promotes leveling.

In textile sizing, Sorbitol acts as a humectant, and especially in winter it preserves the film of the adhesive from becoming dry and maintain its plasticity. In scouring operations, it mainly acts as a sequestering agent. In finishing, it gives a soft feel, good drape and proven dimension stability to the fabric.

TOBACCO :

The moisture content of cigarettes is very important, and change in moisture content, due to change in humidity, is minimised if Sorbitol is used as a conditioner.Also Sorbitol is non- volatile and hence there is no danger of losing the conditioner during drying and other processing operations. Sorbitol is compatible with various ingredients used in tobacco mixture. Because of its sweetness and cooling taste, Sorbitol contributes to the flavour of chewing tobacco besides conditioning the product. 

ADHESIVES :

Sorbitol is the ideal answer since it neither loses nor absorbs any appreciable quantity of water, unlike conventional humectant like glycerine or ethylene glycol sorbitol increases the viscosity of the glue composition so that more water is needed, resulting in greater economy.

Sorbitol functions as a moisture conditioning agent and its non-volatility ensures non-cracking labels and envelops with minimum of curling.

PHARMACEUTICALS :

Sorbitol finds use as a bodying agent in pharmaceuticals syrups and elixirs. The use of Sorbitol in cough syrups reduces the tendency of the bottle caps to stick due to the crystallization of the sugar present. Sorbitol is a good humectant and plasticiser and these properties make it useful in emulsion ointments, non - fat soluble ointments and gelatine capsules. Ointments, creams and pastes will show satisfactory spreading capacity with Sorbitol as adjuvant. Aqueous Sorbitol Solutions are not subject to fermentative decomposition, and that is why Sorbitol finds increasing use in the preparation of dental formulations for buccal cavity.

COSMETICS :

Sorbitol is widely used in cosmetics, both as a humectant to retard loss of water from O/W type of creams and as an emollient.

Sorbitol liquid 70 % has proved a useful additive for improving the aesthetic appeal of glycerine carbolic soap by imparting better transparency. Generally speaking, Liquid Sorbitol 70 % can replace other humectants, weight by weight where the humectant percentage is less than 10 %.

TOOTHPASTES :

Sorbitol effectively replaces glycerine and sugar in toothpastes, imparting the required degree of plasticity and sweetness. This usage is based on the alkali stability, sweetness, humectant and plasticising properties of Sorbitol.

SKIN CREAM AND CREAM FOUNDATION :

Sorbitol replaces glycerine as a humectant and conditioning agent and helps to reduce the greasiness as well as the particle size of the disperse phase.

EMULSIONS :

Sorbitol retards the loss of water by evaporation from oil in water emulsion and is more effective than glycerine of the same concentration when this is less than 10 %.

FOODS :

Sorbitol imparts to frozen desserts, body and textures as well as some sweetness. Sorbitol is used in frozen desserts for diabetics because it is slowly absorbed from the intestine and is metabolised as fructose. In the manufacture of sugarless chewing gum, Sorbitol provides the water-soluble solids; further a 70 % solution of Sorbitol in water provides proper plasticity. Sorbitol resists fermentation of acids by microorganisms in the mouth, and therefore it is believed not to contribute to the incidence of dental caries. In artificially sweetened canned fruits, the addition of Sorbitol syrup provides body and also reduces the undesirable after - taste of saccharine. In low -caloric soft drinks, Sorbitol finds use as a bodying agent in addition to its use as a sequestering agent in canned soft drinks.

DIABETIC DIETS : Extensive research has led to the adoption of Sorbitol to substitute sugar as a sweetening agent in diabetic diets.

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