Database/Cleansing/Ammonium Cocoyl Isethionate
Mostly natural · ISO 16128

Is Ammonium Cocoyl Isethionate natural?

Mostly. The coconut fatty acid and the sulfonate group are natural origin; the two-carbon linker and the ammonium counter-ion are petrochemical.

INCI nameAmmonium Cocoyl Isethionate
CAS223705-57-5
FunctionCleansing · Cleansing Surfactant
FeedstockCoconut fatty acid condensed with ammonium isethionate (from…

How we scored it

Cocoyl acyl C12H23O 183.3 Da (coconut, natural) + isethionate linker O-CH2CH2 (C2H4O 44.1 Da, ethylene oxide, petrochemical) + SO3 80.1 Da (mineral, natural) + NH4 18.0 Da (synthetic ammonia, petrochemical) = 325.5 Da; natural 263.4/325.5 = 0.81. Sodium cocoyl isethionate scores 0.87 because sodium counts as natural origin.
What counts. ISO 16128-2 scores the atoms that remain in the final ingredient. Reagents, solvents, catalysts and protecting groups used during manufacture leave no mass behind and are not counted.

Where it comes from

Coconut fatty acid condensed with ammonium isethionate (from ethylene oxide and bisulfite).

In plain English

A gentle cleansing surfactant made from coconut fatty acid combined with a small sulfonate molecule, used here as the ammonium salt. Common in syndet bars and mild facial cleansers.

CosIng definition: Fatty acids, coco, 2-sulfoethyl esters, ammonium salts

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References

  1. 1ISO 16128-1:2016 and ISO 16128-2:2017 — Guidelines on technical definitions and criteria for natural and organic cosmetic ingredients and products. ISO, Geneva.
  2. 2AMMONIUM COCOYL ISETHIONATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3AMMONIUM COCOYL ISETHIONATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=AMMONIUM%20COCOYL%20ISETHIONATE