Patent ID: 7105579

Claim:
A method for controlling the stability of an emulsion comprising a hydrophobic phase dispersed in an aqueous phase and a surfactant in an amount of greater than 0 but less than 4% by weight, said process comprising the step of using in the emulsion a block copolymer selected from the group consisting of: (block A)-(block B) di-block copolymers, (block A)-(block B)-(block A) tri-block copolymers, and (block B)-(block A)-(block B) tri-block copolymers, wherein block A is a hydrophilic block, block B is a hydrophobic block, and, both block A and block B comprise units deriving from a mono-alpha-ethylenically-unsaturated monomers, and wherein the weight ratio between the amount of the block polymer and the amount of the surfactant together with the block copolymer is comprised between 50% and 1%.