Texas Cosmetology License Exam — All Questions

On the pH scale, a product with a pH of 9 is:

• a.Neutral, the same as pure water
• b.Acidic
• c.Alkaline, which tends to swell and open the hair cuticle✓
• d.So acidic it will dissolve the hair instantly

The pH scale runs from 0 to 14; 7 is neutral (pure water). Values below 7 are acidic, and values above 7 are alkaline (basic). A pH of 9 is alkaline. Alkaline products soften and swell the hair and raise the cuticle, which is why permanent color, lighteners, and alkaline (cold) waves are alkaline — they need the cuticle open to work. Acidic products (like many conditioners and toners) contract and smooth the cuticle. The scale is logarithmic, so each whole number is a tenfold change.

In permanent (oxidative) haircolor, what is the primary role of hydrogen peroxide (the developer)?

• a.It provides oxygen to develop the color molecules and lift natural pigment✓
• b.It neutralizes the color so it will not fade
• c.It acidifies the mixture to close the cuticle
• d.It removes the need for a patch test

Permanent haircolor is an oxidation process. Hydrogen peroxide acts as the oxidizing agent (developer): it releases oxygen that both lightens (lifts) the hair's natural melanin and triggers the small color precursor molecules to combine into larger colored molecules trapped inside the cortex. Higher developer volumes (for example 20 vs. 10 volume) provide more oxygen and more lift. The alkaline ammonia in the color swells the cuticle so the developer and dyes can enter.

Which statement correctly contrasts a thioglycolate (acid/true-acid or cold-wave 'thio') perm with a hydroxide chemical hair relaxer?

• a.Both use exactly the same chemistry and are interchangeable on any hair
• b.Thio perms are permanent while hydroxide relaxers wash out in one shampoo
• c.Hydroxide relaxers can be neutralized back with thioglycolate and reused as a perm
• d.Thio perms break and reform disulfide bonds and are neutralized/re-oxidized, while hydroxide relaxers break disulfide bonds by a different (non-reversible) reaction and are neutralized by rinsing and an acid-balanced shampoo, not re-oxidized✓

Ammonium thioglycolate (thio) waving breaks the hair's disulfide bonds by reduction; the hair is molded, then an oxidizing neutralizer rebuilds the bonds in the new shape. Hydroxide relaxers (sodium, potassium, lithium, or 'no-lye' guanidine hydroxide) straighten by a different, non-reversible chemical reaction (lanthionization) that permanently breaks disulfide bonds; they are stopped by thorough rinsing plus an acid-balanced neutralizing shampoo, not by an oxidizing neutralizer. Critically, thio and hydroxide chemistries are not compatible on the same hair and must never be layered without careful transition.

Before applying an oxidative (aniline-derivative) permanent haircolor, a predisposition test is performed to check for allergy. This test is known as the:

• a.Strand test
• b.Patch (predisposition) test✓
• c.Porosity test
• d.Elasticity test

A patch (predisposition) test is applied to the skin (behind the ear or inside the elbow) 24 to 48 hours before an aniline-derivative color service to detect an allergic reaction; a red, itchy, or swollen response is a positive reaction, and the service should not be performed. Do not confuse it with a strand test, which is done on a section of hair to preview the actual color result, timing, and the hair's condition — not to check for allergy.