Formulations

A formulation is a mixture deliberately designed to make a useful product. Its ingredients are chosen because they each have a particular job in the final product, and they are combined in carefully measured amounts.

Both the choice of ingredients and their proportions affect the product’s properties. For example, a paint formulation must have a suitable colour and texture for its intended use. Changing an ingredient or its amount could change those properties and make the paint less suitable.

Depending on the product’s purpose, a formulation may be designed for particular effectiveness, texture, colour, strength, stability or safety. Everyday formulations include fuels, cleaning agents, paints, medicines, alloys, fertilisers and foods.

Identifying a formulation

To identify a formulation, look for evidence that a product is a mixture made for a specific purpose, with ingredients and proportions selected to give it particular properties. A mixture formed without such a plan is not necessarily a formulation.

The exact ingredient names in a proprietary product are not needed to recognise it as a formulation. The important point is that it is a designed mixture.