DESC:TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present disclosure relates to evaluation of extent of air pollution on hair. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to use of turbidity test to evaluate the extent of air pollution on hair.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
[0003] With environment pollution of all sorts including air, noise, light, land, water, among others, being prevalent in existing times, it is becoming increasingly important to understand and assess the impact/extent of pollution on various objects including human beings and/or parts thereof. Such assessment needs to be quantified to the extent possible in order to make it objective, and therefore efforts need to be made to identify and determine techniques that can quickly, efficiently, and accurately help determine extent and impact of pollution.
[0004] U.S. Patent No. 4263277 discloses methods for measuring hair damage by soaking a known weight of hair sample in a 0.1N tetraamine copper sulfate, followed by washing with water. The filtrate is then titrated against 0.1N sodium thiosulfate to determine the amount of copper absorbed by the hair. The damage to hair is assumed to correlate with the amount of copper absorbed by the hair sample. However, such measurements do not enable evaluation of effect/extent of air pollution on hair.
[0005] In accordance with the above, there is a need in the art for a technique that enables accurate measurement of effect/extent of air pollution on hair. The present disclosure satisfies the existing needs, as well as others, and generally overcomes the deficiencies found in the prior art.
[0006] All publications herein are incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application were specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference. Where a definition or use of a term in an incorporated reference is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of that term in the reference does not apply.
[0007] In some embodiments, the numbers expressing quantities of ingredients, properties such as concentration, reaction conditions, and so forth, used to describe and claim certain embodiments of the invention are to be understood as being modified in some instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, in some embodiments, the numerical parameters set forth in the written description are approximations that can vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by a particular embodiment. In some embodiments, the numerical parameters should be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of some embodiments of the invention are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as practicable. The numerical values presented in some embodiments of the invention may contain certain errors necessarily resulting from the standard deviation found in their respective testing measurements.
[0008] As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a,” “an,” and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
[0009] The recitation of ranges of values herein is merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range. Unless otherwise indicated herein, each individual value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g. “such as”) provided with respect to certain embodiments herein is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention otherwise claimed.
[0010] Groupings of alternative elements or embodiments of the invention disclosed herein are not to be construed as limitations. Each group member can be referred to and claimed individually or in any combination with other members of the group or other elements found herein. One or more members of a group can be included in, or deleted from, a group for reasons of convenience and/or patentability.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
[0011] It is an object of the present disclosure to provide a system and method for analyzing or evaluating hair, particularly for determining the amount of damage to hair.
[0012] It is a further object of the present disclosure to provide a system and method capable of determining the extent of air pollution on hair.
[0013] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide direct and objective measurement procedures for determining the extent to which hair has been polluted by air pollutants.
[0014] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide a simple method for evaluation of extent of air pollution on hair.
[0015] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide rapid and accurate method for measurement of effect/extent of air pollution on hair.
[0016] It is yet another object of the present disclosure to provide a system and method for quantitatively determining extent of air pollution on hair with high sensibility and reproducibility.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0017] Aspects of the present disclosure relate to evaluation of extent of air pollution on hair. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to use of turbidity test to evaluate the extent of air pollution on hair. In an aspect, the present disclosure provides a method for determining extent of air pollution on hair, wherein the method can include the steps of: (a) preparing a plurality of hair swatches; (b) exposing the plurality of prepared hair swatches to air pollution for a period of time; (c) contacting the plurality of polluted hair swatches with a quantity of cleansing solution for a period of time, thus forming a turbid test solution; and (d) measuring optical transmittance and absorbance of the turbid test solution using a spectrophotometer to determine the extent to which each hair swatch has been polluted by air pollutants.
[0018] In an embodiment, the step (a) of preparing a plurality of hair swatches can include the steps of: (a1) washing each of the plurality of hair swatches with a shampoo; (a2) rinsing each of the plurality of washed hair swatches with water; and (a3) drying each of the plurality of rinsed hair swatches.
[0019] In an exemplary embodiment, the step (a) of preparing a plurality of hair swatches can include the steps of: wetting each hair swatch with water, placing each hair swatch in a shampoo containing bowl, washing each hair swatch with shampoo, rinsing each hair swatch with water, optionally removing excess water if required, combing the hair swatches, and drying the swatches.
[0020] In an embodiment, the step (b) of exposing the plurality of prepared hair swatches to air pollution for a period of time can include: (b1) placing each of the plurality of prepared hair swatches into a gas chamber; and (b2) passing a stream of gas containing one or more pollutants into the gas chamber for a period of time, thus polluting each of the plurality of prepared hair swatches.
[0021] In an exemplary embodiment, the step (b) of exposing the plurality of prepared hair swatches to air pollution for a period of time can include the steps of: clipping each hair swatch in an exhaust chamber at an allotted randomized holder, attaching an exhaust inlet of the exhaust chamber to an exhaust pipe of an internal combustion engine, and running the engine for specified time interval. According to embodiments, there can be a logarithmic increase in exposure based on the time for which each hair swatch is exposed to the exhaust/polluted air, say for 20 mins, 40 mins, and 60 mins.
[0022] In an embodiment, each hair swatch can, during the preparation stage, be processed with a different shampoo or other hair care products, and in case the intent of the measurement of effect of air pollution on hair is to compare the shampoos, all the hair swatches that have been treated with different shampoos can be exposed to an exhaust or polluted air for the same time, say for 30 mins.
[0023] In an embodiment, the plurality of polluted hair swatches can be contacted with the cleansing solution in step (c) for a time period ranging from 1 hour to 24 hours.
[0024] In another embodiment, the plurality of polluted hair swatches can be contacted with the cleansing solution in step (c) at a temperature ranging from 20oC to 40oC.
[0025] In an embodiment, the method disclosed herein can further include the step of diluting the resultant turbid solution in step (c) with water in a ratio of from 1:1 to 1: 10 by volume to form an optically clear solution, which in turn can be subjected to spectrophotometric analysis to determine the extent of air pollution on hair.
[0026] In an embodiment, the optical transmittance and absorbance of the resultant turbid test solution can be measured using a spectrophotometer.
[0027] In another aspect, the present disclosure provides a system for determining extent of air pollution on hair, the system can include: a gas chamber configured to accommodate a plurality of hair swatches and further configured to pollute each of the plurality of hair swatches with a gas containing one or more pollutants; a cleansing solution for treating each of the plurality of polluted hair swatches and providing a turbid test solution; and a means configured to measure optical transmittance and absorbance of the turbid test solution in order for evaluating the extent to which each hair swatch has been polluted by air pollutants.
[0028] In an embodiment, the means for measuring optical transmittance and absorbance of the resultant turbid test solution can a spectrophotometer.
[0029] Various objects, features, aspects and advantages of the inventive subject matter will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, along with the accompanying drawing figures in which like numerals represent like components.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0030] The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the present disclosure, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure.
[0031] FIGs. 1A and 1B illustrate exemplary graphs and showing plotting of average transmittance values across exposure times in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0032] FIGs. 2A and 2B illustrate exemplary graphs and showing plotting of average transmittance values across exposure times in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0033] FIG. 3 illustrates a graph showing output of the turbidity test with respect to transmittance values with various oil/shampoo compositions for exhaust/cigarette smoke (in blue and red color respectively) based air pollution.
[0034] FIGs. 4A and 4B illustrate clipping of hair swatch to an exhaust chamber at an allotted holder in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0035] FIGs. 5A to 5C illustrate placing of hair swatch in a smoke chamber in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0036] The following is a detailed description of embodiments of the disclosure depicted in the accompanying drawings. The embodiments are in such detail as to clearly communicate the disclosure. However, the amount of detail offered is not intended to limit the anticipated variations of embodiments; on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
[0037] Unless the context requires otherwise, throughout the specification which follow, the word “comprise” and variations thereof, such as, “comprises” and “comprising” are to be construed in an open, inclusive sense that is as “including, but not limited to.”
[0038] Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.
[0039] As used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the content clearly dictates otherwise. It should also be noted that the term “or” is generally employed in its sense including “and/or” unless the content clearly dictates otherwise.
[0040] In some embodiments, the numbers expressing quantities of ingredients, properties such as concentration, reaction conditions, and so forth, used to describe and claim certain embodiments of the invention are to be understood as being modified in some instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, in some embodiments, the numerical parameters set forth in the written description are approximations that can vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by a particular embodiment. In some embodiments, the numerical parameters should be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of some embodiments of the invention are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as practicable.
[0041] The recitation of ranges of values herein is merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range. Unless otherwise indicated herein, each individual value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein.
[0042] All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g. “such as”) provided with respect to certain embodiments herein is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element essential to the practice of the invention.
[0043] The headings and abstract of the invention provided herein are for convenience only and do not interpret the scope or meaning of the embodiments.
[0044] Various terms are used herein. To the extent a term used in a claim is not defined below, it should be given the broadest definition persons in the pertinent art have given that term as reflected in printed publications and issued patents at the time of filing.
[0045] Reference will now be made in detail to the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts.
[0046] The following discussion provides many example embodiments of the inventive subject matter. Although each embodiment represents a single combination of inventive elements, the inventive subject matter is considered to include all possible combinations of the disclosed elements. Thus if one embodiment comprises elements A, B, and C, and a second embodiment comprises elements B and D, then the inventive subject matter is also considered to include other remaining combinations of A, B, C, or D, even if not explicitly disclosed.
[0047] The present disclosure relates to evaluation of extent of air pollution on hair. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to use of turbidity test to evaluate the extent of air pollution on hair.
[0048] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides a method for determining extent of air pollution on hair, wherein the method can include the steps of: (a) preparing a plurality of hair swatches; (b) exposing the plurality of prepared hair swatches to air pollution for a period of time; (c) contacting the plurality of polluted hair swatches with a quantity of cleansing solution for a period of time, thus forming a turbid test solution; and (d) measuring optical transmittance and absorbance of the turbid test solution using a spectrophotometer to determine the extent to which each hair swatch has been polluted by air pollutants. The present disclosure therefore relates to determination of impact of pollution (e.g. retention of pollutants, soot, tar and combustion particle) on hair, which is evaluated by turbidity test to quantify the pollutants in the test sample after controlled exposure.
[0049] In an embodiment, the step (a) of preparing a plurality of hair swatches can include the steps of: (a1) washing each of the plurality of hair swatches with a shampoo; (a2) rinsing each of the plurality of washed hair swatches with water; and (a3) drying each of the plurality of rinsed hair swatches.
[0050] In an exemplary embodiment, the step (a) of preparing a plurality of hair swatches can include the steps of: wetting each hair swatch with water, placing each hair swatch in a shampoo containing bowl, washing each hair swatch with shampoo, rinsing each hair swatch with water, optionally removing excess water if required, combing the hair swatches, and drying the swatches. In another embodiment, additional hair care products such as conditioners, oil, among others can also be used to prepare the hair swatches.
[0051] In an embodiment, the step (b) of exposing the plurality of prepared hair swatches to air pollution for a period of time can include: (b1) placing each of the plurality of prepared hair swatches into a gas chamber; and (b2) passing a stream of gas containing one or more pollutants into the gas chamber for a period of time, thus polluting each of the plurality of prepared hair swatches.
[0052] In an exemplary embodiment, the step (b) of exposing the plurality of prepared hair swatches to air pollution for a period of time can include the steps of: clipping each hair swatch in an exhaust chamber at an allotted randomized holder, attaching an exhaust inlet of the exhaust chamber to an exhaust pipe of an internal combustion engine, and running the engine for specified time interval.
[0053] In an embodiment, the plurality of prepared hair swatches can be exposed to air pollution in step (b) for a period of time ranging from 1 min to 120 minutes. According to embodiments, there can be a logarithmic increase in exposure based on the time for which each hair swatch is exposed to exhaust/polluted air, say for 20 mins, 40 mins, and 60 mins.
[0054] In an embodiment, each hair swatch can, during the preparation stage, be processed with a different shampoo or other hair care products, and in case the intent of the measurement of effect of air pollution on hair is to compare the shampoos, all the hair swatches that have been treated with different shampoos can be exposed to an exhaust or polluted air for the same time, say for 30 mins.
[0055] In an embodiment, the cleansing solution employed in step (c) can be 8% clear shampoo.
[0056] In another embodiment, the plurality of polluted hair swatches can be contacted with the cleansing solution in step (c) at a temperature ranging from 20oC to 40oC, preferably at a temperature of 30oC.
[0057] In an embodiment, the plurality of polluted hair swatches can be soaked in 8% clear shampoo at room temperature for a time period ranging from 1 hour to 24 hours to form a turbid test solution.
[0058] In an embodiment, the method disclosed herein can further include the step of diluting the resultant turbid solution in step (c) with water in a ratio of from 1:1 to 1:10 by volume to form an optically clear solution, which in turn can be subjected to spectrophotometric analysis to determine the extent of air pollution on hair.
[0059] In an embodiment, the plurality of hair searches, after formation of turbid test solution, can be removed prior to subjecting the turbid test solution to spectrophotometric analysis.
[0060] In an embodiment, the optical transmittance and absorbance of the resultant turbid test solution can be measured using a spectrophotometer.
[0061] In an aspect, the step (c) of conducting turbidity test on the plurality of polluted hair swatches can include the steps of: dipping of each hair swatch in a cleansing solution for a defined time, setting the wavelength of the spectrophotometer for spectral analysis at critical wave length or any other desired/configured value, using solution of the test sample with water for spectral analysis, measuring transmittance and absorbance.
[0062] In an embodiment, air pollution can be in a form of exhaust air that includes automotive engine (petrol) exhaust, wherein a logarithmic increase in pollution can be noticed with respect to time of exposure of say 20 min, 40 min and 60 minutes after washing the hair with standard clear shampoo. In case different shampoos need to be compared for their impact on handling air pollution, each swatch can be exposed for 30 minutes. In another embodiment, exposure to cigarette smoke in the automated smoker can also be considered for evaluation of extent of air pollution, wherein logarithmic increase in pollution can be noticed with respect to smoke exposure with say 5 cigarettes, 10 cigarettes and 15 cigarettes after washing the hair with standard shampoo. For variability consistency across shampoos, each swatch can be exposed to the smoke of 15 cigarettes.
[0063] In an aspect, the disclosed technique deals with air pollution, and exemplifies air exhaust from automotive engine (petrol) and cigarette smoke, wherein any other form of air pollution is completely within the scope of the present disclosure.
[0064] In an embodiment, the disclosed method of evaluating the extent of air pollution can include use of spectrophotometric evaluation, wherein the turbidity can be expressed as the pollution level. Post exposure of hair swatches to air pollution for a defined time period, when the hair swatch is treated with a surfactant (say 8% clear shampoo for instance), the pollutants such as dirt, soot, tar, particulate matters, etc. adsorbed on the hair swatches make the solution turbid, wherein such a turbid solution can be analyzed for absorbance and/or transmittance in a spectrophotometer in a manner such that higher the absorbance, higher is the pollution, and higher the transmittance, lesser is the pollution.
[0065] In another aspect, the present disclosure provides a system for determining extent of air pollution on hair, the system can include: a gas chamber configured to accommodate a plurality of hair swatches and further configured to pollute each of the plurality of hair swatches with a gas containing one or more pollutants; a cleansing solution for treating each of the plurality of polluted hair swatches and providing a turbid test solution; and a means configured to measure optical transmittance and absorbance of the turbid test solution in order for evaluating the extent to which each hair swatch has been polluted by air pollutants.
[0066] In an embodiment, the means for measuring optical transmittance and absorbance of the resultant turbid test solution can a spectrophotometer.
[0067] In an embodiment, the system for determining extent of air pollution on hair can include 8% clear shampoo as cleansing solution.
[0068] While the foregoing description discloses various embodiments of the disclosure, other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised without departing from the basic scope of the disclosure. The invention is not limited to the described embodiments, versions or examples, which are included to enable a person having ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention when combined with information and knowledge available to the person having ordinary skill in the art.

EXAMPLES
[0069] The present disclosure is further explained in the form of following examples. However, it is to be understood that the foregoing examples are merely illustrative and are not to be taken as limitations upon the scope of the invention. Various changes and modifications to the disclosed embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention.
[0070] Table-1 below illustrates exposure of three hair swatch samples A1, A2, and A3 across multiple exposure time durations at 0 mins, 20 mins, 40 mins, and 60 mins to engine exhaust. Table-1 further illustrates values of absorbance and transmittance after each hair sample has been exposed to engine exhaust, as measured using a wavelength of critical wavelength in a spectrophotometer, wherein transmittance values have been used to represent difference between two samples. As can be seen, for hair sample A1, absorbance values increase from .02 to .0124 to .26 to .455 as the exposure time is increased from 0 mins to 60 mins. Similarly, transmittance values decrease from 95.6 to 75 to 55 to 35.1 as the exposure time is increased from 0 mins to 60 mins. Similar values can be noted for other hair swatch samples A2 and A3 as well. Table-2 on the other hand illustrates average transmittance and absorbance values for each time of exposure.

TABLE-1
Time Assessments Absorbance Transmittance
0 min A1 0.02 95.6
A2 0.021 95.2
A3 0.022 95

20 min A A1 0.0124 75
A2 0.123 75.3
A3 0.123 75.2

20 min B A1 0.123 75.4
A2 0.123 75.3
A3 0.123 75.4

20 min c A1 0.105 78.5
A2 0.103 78.9
A3 0.103 78.8


40 min A A1 0.26 55
A2 0.25 55.3
A3 0.26 55

40 min B A1 0.26 54.1
A2 0.267 54.1
A3 0.267 54.7

40 min C A1 0.26 55
A2 0.26 54.9
A3 0.262 54.7


60 min A A1 0.455 35.1
A2 0.456 35
A3 0.462 34.5

60 min B A1 0.446 35.8
A2 0.451 35.4
A3 0.451 35.4

60 min C A1 0.456 35
A2 0.451 35.4
A3 0.455 35.1

TABLE-2

Time of exposure Transmittance
Average Value_T
0 min 95.27
20 min 76.42
40 min 54.76
60 min 35.19

[0071] FIGs. 1A and 1B illustrate exemplary graphs showing plotting of average transmittance values across exposure times in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0072] Table-3 below illustrates transmittance and absorbance values for cigarette smoke based air pollution in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown, exposure is changed in the form of number of cigarettes ranging from 0 cigarettes to 5 cigarettes to 10 cigarettes to 15 cigarettes for each of the three hair swatch samples. In an aspect, as shown, two experiments (Exp1 and Exp2) are performed for each set. As can be seen, value of absorbance increases with the increasing exposure that is created with higher number of cigarettes, and value of transmittance decreases, as is also shown in Table-4, which shows average transmittance values for 0, 5, 10, and 15 cigarettes. FIGs. 2A and 2B illustrate exemplary graphs showing plotting of average transmittance values across exposure times in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

TABLE-3
0 Cig A1 0.009 97.9 0.013 97
A2 0.013 97.1 0.013 97
A3 0.013 97.1 0.013 97

5- A A1 0.023 94.9 0.022 95
A2 0.022 95.1 0.021 95.3
A3 0.023 94.9 0.022 95.1

5- B A1 0.019 95.8 0.022 95.1
A2 0.018 95.9 0.02 95.5
A3 0.021 95.2 0.022 95.1

5-C A1 0.019 95.7 0.021 95.2
A2 0.02 95.4 0.02 95.5
A3 0.021 95.3 0.02 95.4


10-A A1 0.038 91.6 0.039 91.4
A2 0.04 91.3 0.38 91.7
A3 0.04 91.3 0.04 91.2

10-B A1 0.038 91.7 0.041 91
A2 0.039 91.5 0.04 91.1
A3 0.038 91.7 0.04 91.3

10-C A1 0.04 91.3 0.04 91.1
A2 0.04 91.1 0.04 91.2
A3 0.04 91.1 0.04 91.1


15-A A1 0.051 88.9 0.052 88.8
A2 0.055 88.2 0.054 88.3
A3 0.054 88.4 0.054 88.4

15-B A1 0.053 88.5 0.052 88.7
A2 0.055 88.2 0.053 88.5
A3 0.052 88.8 0.054 88.3

15-C A1 0.055 88.1 0.055 88.1
A2 0.053 88.5 0.054 88.4
A3 0.055 88.1 0.051 88.9

TABLE-4
Number of Cig T value
0 Cig 97.18
5 Cig 95.30
10 Cig 91.32
15 Cig 88.45

[0073] Table-5 below illustrates assessment of three hair swatch samples A1, A2, and A3 with respect to their transmittance/absorbance values across different oil/shampoo compositions when exposed to exhaust. For each oil/shampoo composition, three experiments are conducted on each hair swatch sample. As can be seen, values of absorbance are different for each oil/shampoo composition. For instance, absorbance values for shampoo 1 for A1 sample (.08 for experiment 1) is much lower than the absorbance values for oil 1 for A1 sample (.38 for experiment 1). Similarly, transmittance value for experiment 1 for sample A2 for shampoo 2 is 95.90, which is higher than the transmittance value for experiment 1 for sample A2 for shampoo 1 (91.70). Average absorbance/transmittance values can also be computed if desired. Table-6 shows similar values of absorbance/transmittance for cigarette smoke based air pollution. Table-7 illustrates comparison of various oil/shampoo compositions for both the types of air pollution sources, namely engine exhaust and cigarette smoke. As can be seen, transmittance values are highest for Shampoo 5 composition, followed by Shampoo 4 composition, and Shampoo 2 composition. FIG. 3 illustrates a graph 300 showing output of the turbidity test with respect to transmittance values with various oil/shampoo compositions for exhaust/cigarette smoke (in blue and red color respectively) based air pollution.

TABLE-5
Sample Assessments Exp 1_A Exp 1_T Exp 2_A Exp 2_T Exp 3_A Exp3_T Average_T
A T A T A T
Oil
A1 0.38 41.90 0.91 12.40 0.90 12.50
A2 0.40 39.90 0.94 11.40 0.93 11.80
A3 0.33 46.40 0.85 14.20 0.77 16.90

A1 0.60 25.10 0.91 12.20 0.90 12.7
A2 0.45 35.70 0.91 12.30 0.91 12.3
A3 0.40 39.50 0.90 12.70 0.92 11.90

A1 0.62 24.10 0.89 12.80 0.85 14.2
A2 0.69 20.40 0.87 13.40 0.89 12.8
A3 0.73 18.70 0.94 11.60 0.90 12.5
32.41 12.56 13.06 19.34

Shampoo 1
A1 0.08 82.50 0.07 85.60 0.01 98.00
A2 0.08 82.40 0.07 85.00 0.01 98.10
A3 0.08 82.60 0.06 86.40 0.01 98.10

A1 0.04 91.90 0.04 91.90 0.01 98.90
A2 0.04 91.90 0.03 92.40 0.01 98.50
A3 0.04 92.00 0.04 92.10 0.01 98.60

A1 0.04 91.70 0.04 92.10 0.02 96.60
A2 0.04 91.80 0.04 91.90 0.02 96.70
A3 0.04 91.70 0.04 91.90 0.01 96.80
Average 88.72 89.92 97.81 92.15

Shampoo 2 A1 0.02 95.90 0.03 94.20 0.01 97.50
A2 0.02 96.10 0.03 94.30 0.01 97.20
A3 0.02 95.90 0.03 94.20 0.01 97.20

A1 0.02 96.50 0.01 96.90 0.01 98.00
A2 0.02 96.30 0.01 97.40 0.01 97.80
A3 0.02 96.30 0.01 97.30 0.01 97.80

A1 0.03 93.80 0.02 96.20 0.01 98.90
A2 0.03 93.80 0.02 96.20 0.00 99.00
A3 0.03 93.60 0.02 96.00 0.00 99.00
Average 95.36 95.86 98.04 96.42

Shampoo 3
A1 0.08 82.80 0.03 94.40 0.03 92.90
A2 0.08 82.50 0.02 94.60 0.02 94.70
A3 0.08 82.40 0.03 94.40 0.02 94.70

A1 0.01 98.20 0.02 96.70 0.01 98.30
A2 0.01 97.90 0.02 96.30 0.01 98.70
A3 0.01 98.00 0.02 96.40 0.01 98.60

A1 0.01 98.10 0.02 96.20 0.01 97.20
A2 0.01 97.90 0.02 95.80 0.02 96.60
A3 0.01 97.80 0.02 96.10 0.01 97.00
Average 92.84 95.66 96.52 95.01

Shampoo 4
A1 0.00 99.00 0.02 95.60 0.01 98.20
A2 0.00 99.30 0.02 95.30 0.01 98.30
A3 0.01 98.00 0.02 95.70 0.01 98.20

A1 0.01 98.10 0.02 96.00 0.01 98.20
A2 0.01 97.90 0.02 96.00 0.01 97.80
A3 0.01 97.80 0.02 95.90 0.01 98.10

A1 0.01 98.60 0.02 96.40 0.01 97.90
A2 0.01 98.60 0.02 96.60 0.01 97.80
A3 0.01 98.10 0.02 96.60 0.01 97.90
Average 98.38 96.01 98.04 97.48

Shampoo 5 A1 0.01 97.40 0.02 96.70 0.01 97.80
A2 0.01 97.40 0.02 96.70 0.01 97.80
A3 0.01 97.00 0.02 96.60 0.01 97.60

A1 0.00 99.80 0.01 97.90 0.02 96.80
A2 0.00 99.80 0.01 98.10 0.02 96.80
A3 0.00 99.80 0.01 97.70 0.02 96.60

A1 0.00 99.00 0.02 95.60 0.01 98.20
A2 0.00 99.30 0.02 95.70 0.01 97.90
A3 0.00 99.30 0.02 95.60 0.01 98.00
Average 98.76 96.73 97.50 97.66

TABLE-6
Sample Assessments Exp 1_A Exp 1_T Exp 2_A Exp 2_T Exp 3_A Exp 3_T Average_T
A T A T A T
Oil A1 0.34 45.60 0.69 20.50 0.77 17.00
A2 0.34 45.60 0.79 16.30 0.76 17.50
A3 0.31 48.70 0.75 17.90 0.75 17.80

A1 0.38 41.30 0.92 12.10 0.77 17.10
A2 0.37 41.20 0.90 12.50 0.75 17.70
A3 0.31 49.50 0.86 13.90 0.74 18.20

A1 0.54 28.60 0.57 27.00 0.73 18.80
A2 0.50 31.60 0.48 32.90 0.71 19.30
A3 0.46 34.80 0.44 36.20 0.69 20.30
40.77 21.03 18.19 26.66

Shampoo 1 A1 0.02 95.90 0.04 91.80 0.04 90.80
A2 0.02 96.20 0.04 90.50 0.04 91.30
A3 0.02 96.20 0.04 90.40 0.04 90.70

A1 0.02 95.30 0.04 92.00 0.06 87.60
A2 0.02 95.30 0.03 92.60 0.06 87.60
A3 0.02 95.50 0.03 92.70 0.06 87.20

A1 0.04 90.60 0.02 94.90 0.05 89.90
A2 0.04 90.60 0.02 95.10 0.04 94.40
A3 0.04 90.60 0.02 95.30 0.05 89.70
94.02 92.81 89.91 92.25
Shampoo 3 A1 0.01 98.20 0.01 98.80 0.02 95.00
A2 0.01 98.00 0.01 98.40 0.03 94.40
A3 0.01 97.90 0.00 99.60 0.02 94.70

A1 0.01 98.10 0.01 98.20 0.03 94.40
A2 0.01 98.20 0.00 99.00 0.03 92.20
A3 0.01 96.80 0.01 98.30 0.02 94.60

A1 0.02 96.60 0.00 99.50 0.02 95.00
A2 0.02 96.60 0.00 99.20 0.02 95.20
A3 0.02 96.00 0.00 99.40 0.02 95.50
97.38 98.93 94.56 96.96
Shampoo 3 A1 0.03 94.10 0.01 98.80 0.02 95.20
A2 0.03 93.90 0.01 98.70 0.02 95.20
A3 0.03 93.90 0.01 98.50 0.02 95.20

A1 0.02 95.00 0.01 97.70 0.01 96.90
A2 0.02 96.00 0.01 98.00 0.01 97.10
A3 0.02 96.10 0.01 98.10 0.00 97.60

A1 0.02 96.60 0.00 99.30 0.02 95.20
A2 0.01 96.80 0.00 99.30 0.02 94.80
A3 0.02 96.70 0.00 99.90 0.02 95.50
95.46 98.70 95.86 96.67
Shampoo 4 A1 0.01 97.00 0.01 98.60 0.02 96.00
A2 0.02 96.40 0.00 99.10 0.02 96.60
A3 0.02 96.50 0.01 98.80 0.02 96.40

A1 0.02 96.60 0.01 98.50 0.02 94.60
A2 0.01 96.90 0.01 98.20 0.03 94.10
A3 0.02 96.60 0.01 98.20 0.03 93.90

A1 0.01 97.70 0.00 99.10 0.03 94.50
A2 0.01 97.60 0.00 99.20 0.02 96.60
A3 0.01 98.00 0.00 99.00 0.02 96.60
97.03 98.74 95.48 97.09
Shampoo 5 A1 0.01 97.40 0.00 99.60 0.02 95.50
A2 0.01 97.40 0.00 99.30 0.01 96.80
A3 0.01 97.30 0.01 98.40 0.02 96.00

A1 0.01 98.10 0.00 99.50 0.01 96.90
A2 0.01 97.50 0.00 99.50 0.02 96.30
A3 0.02 96.70 0.00 99.60 0.01 97.00

A1 0.01 96.80 0.01 98.40 0.03 94.40
A2 0.02 96.50 0.00 99.50 0.02 95.40
A3 0.02 96.30 0.00 99.60 0.02 95.40
97.11 99.27 95.97 97.45

TABLE-7
Shampoo Samples Exhaust Smoking
Oil 19.34 26.66
Shampoo 1 92.15 92.25
Shampoo 2 96.42 96.96
Shampoo 3 95.01 96.67
Shampoo 4 97.48 97.09
Shampoo 5 97.66 97.45

[0074] In an exemplary implementation, the proposed method relates to testing of effect of pollution by automotive engine in pollution chamber on hair swatches treated with say hair care products and product standards/controls.

ENGINE EXHAUST EXAMPLE
[0075] HAIR PREPARATION STEP: The first step of the method can include preparation of the hair swatches, by for instance, doing a shampoo wash of each swatch. In an example, the shampoo wash can be done at normal water temperature and at a flow rate between250-300lt/hr, for instance, wherein each swatch can be detangled if there are excessive knots, else another swatch can be selected. In an exemplary implementation, standardized amount of cleansing shampoo can be used for each gm of hair. Swatches can be washed with shampoo as per standard protocol. If necessary, the swatches can be dried in a hood drier, wherein the complete cycle of hair swatch preparation can be repeated for a defined number of times, say 5 times.
[0076] ENGINE EXHAUST EXPOSURE STEP: Once the hair swatches are prepared, each swatch can be clipped to the exhaust chamber at an allotted holder, and exhaust inlet of the pollution chamber can be attached to the exhaust pipe of the automotive vehicle, as shown in FIGs. 4A and 4B. Engine can then be run for a specified time interval to enable logarithmic increase in exposure by zero exposure, 20 min, 40 min and 60 min. In case, if the objective of the study is to compare different products, all swatches treated with desired products can be exposed for 30 minutes.
[0077] TURBIDITY TEST STEP: This step involves measurement of turbidity due to exhaust pollution using spectrophotometer, wherein each pollution-exposed hair swatch can be dipped in 30 ml of cleansing solution (8% clear shampoo), and the swatches can be kept in solution overnight or minimum of 6 hours on hot water batch set at 30oC. Wavelength for spectral analysis can then be set at critical wavelength. In an exemplary implementation, 1:1 solution of test sample with water for spectral analysis can be used to measure transmittance and absorbance values against blank (8% clear shampoo solution: water:: 1:1). In an aspect, in the event that a solution is too turbid, dilution can be increased and maintained as that of the blank.

CIGARETTE SMOKE EXAMPLE:
[0078] HAIR PREPARATION STEP: The first step of the method can include preparation of the hair swatches, by for instance, doing a shampoo wash of each swatch. In an example, the shampoo wash can be done at normal water temperature and at a flow rate between 250-300lt/hr, for instance, wherein each swatch can be detangled if there are excessive knots, else another swatch can be selected. In an exemplary implementation, standardized amount of cleansing shampoo can be used for each gm of hair. Swatches can be washed with shampoo as per standard protocol. If necessary, the swatches can be dried in a hood drier, wherein the complete cycle of hair swatch preparation can be repeated for a defined number of times, say 5 times.
[0079] SMOKEEXPOSURE STEP: Once the hair swatches are prepared, each swatch can be placed in a smoke chamber, and cigarette can be placed in a holder and the motor can be run for suction till the cigarette is burnt till its filter, as shown in FIGs. 5A to 5C. The cycle can be repeated for each swatch for specified cigarette number to enable logarithmic increase in exposure by zero exposure, 5 cig, 10 cig and 15 cigarettes. In case, if the objective of the study is to compare different products, all swatches treated with desired products and can be exposed to 15 cigarettes.
[0080] TURBIDITY TEST STEP: This step involves measurement of turbidity due to exhaust pollution using spectrophotometer, wherein each pollution-exposed hair swatch can be dipped in 30 ml of cleansing solution (8% clear shampoo), and the swatches can be kept in solution overnight or minimum of 6 hours on hot water batch set at 30oC. Wavelength for spectral analysis can then be set at critical wavelength. In an exemplary implementation, 1:1 solution of test sample with water for spectral analysis can be used to measure transmittance and absorbance values against blank (8% clear shampoo solution: water:: 1:1). In an aspect, in the event that a solution is too turbid, dilution can be increased and maintained as that of the blank.

ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION
[0081] The present disclosure provides a system and method for analyzing or evaluating hair, particularly for determining the amount of damage to hair.
[0082] The present disclosure provides a method for determining the extent of air pollution on hair which method is easy to employ, utilizes a small amount of hair sample and requires a short period of time.
[0083] The present disclosure provides a method for determining the extent of air pollution on hair which method is highly reproducible and cost effective.
[0084] The present disclosure provides a simple and highly efficient method for evaluating hair damage caused by air pollutants.
[0085] The present disclosure provides a rapid and accurate method for measurement of effect/extent of air pollution on hair.
[0086] The present disclosure provides a system and method that provide reliable results for damage to hair resulting from all kinds of hair treatments.
[0087] The present disclosure provides a method that overcomes one or more disadvantages associated with the previously known methods of hair pollution/damage evaluation.
,CLAIMS:1. A method for determining extent of air pollution on hair, comprising the steps of:
(a) preparing a plurality of hair swatches;
(b) exposing the plurality of prepared hair swatches to air pollution for a period of time;
(c) contacting the plurality of polluted hair swatches with a quantity of cleansing solution for a period of time, thus forming a turbid test solution; and
(d) measuring optical transmittance and absorbance of the turbid test solution.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein step (a) comprising the steps of:
(a1) washing each of the plurality of hair swatches with a shampoo;
(a2) rinsing each of the plurality of washed hair swatches with water; and
(a3) drying each of the plurality of rinsed hair swatches.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein step (b) comprising the steps of:
(b1) placing the plurality of prepared hair swatches into a gas chamber; and
(b2) passing a stream of gas containing one or more pollutants into the gas chamber for a period of time, thus polluting each of the plurality of prepared hair swatches.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of removing the plurality of hair swatches from the turbid test solution before step (d).

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the cleansing solution comprises 8% clear shampoo.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the optical transmittance and absorbance are measured in step (d) using a spectrophotometer.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of polluted hair swatches are contacted with the cleansing solution in step (c) for a time period ranging from 1 hour to 24 hours.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of prepared hair swatches are exposed to air pollution in step (b) for a period of time ranging from 1 min to 120 minutes.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of polluted hair swatches are contacted with the cleansing solution in step (c) at a temperature ranging from 20oC to 40oC.

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of diluting the turbid test solution with water in a ratio of from 1 :1 to 1: 10 by volume to form an optically clear solution in step (c).

11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of diluting the turbid test solution with water in a ratio of 1 :1 by volume to form an optically clear solution in step (c).

12. A system for determining extent of air pollution on hair, comprising:
a gas chamber configured to accommodate a plurality of hair swatches and further configured to pollute each of the plurality of hair swatches with a gas containing one or more pollutants;
a cleansing solution for treating each of the plurality of polluted hair swatches and providing a turbid test solution; and
a means configured to measure optical transmittance and absorbance of the turbid test solution.

13. The system according to claim 12, wherein the means configured to measure optical transmittance and absorbance of the test solution comprises a spectrophotometer.

14. The system according to claim 12, wherein the cleansing solution comprises 8% clear shampoo.