Database/Depilatory/Ammonium Thiolactate
100% petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Ammonium Thiolactate natural?

No. Both the thiolactic-acid backbone and the ammonium counter-ion trace to petrochemical/natural-gas feedstocks, not to plant or animal sources.

INCI nameAmmonium Thiolactate
CAS13419-67-5
FormulaC3H9NO2S · 123.18 Da
FunctionDepilatory · Hair Waving Or Straightening
FeedstockAmmonium thiolactate is manufactured by neutralising synthetic thiolactic…

How we scored it

Thiolactate from chloropropionic acid/acrylic acid + H2S (petrochemical, n=0); ammonium from natural-gas ammonia (n=0, cf. urea). 0/123.17=0.00.
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

Ammonium thiolactate is manufactured by neutralising synthetic thiolactic acid, itself made from petrochemical chloropropionic acid or acrylic acid plus hydrogen sulfide, with ammonia derived from natural gas. No commercially significant natural route exists.

In plain English

A reducing agent used in hair-straightening and depilatory products. It is the ammonium salt of thiolactic acid, manufactured synthetically from petrochemical starting materials rather than plant or animal sources.

Natural alternatives with the same function

Barium Sulfide 100% natural origin

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 Potassium Sulfide 100% natural origin

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 Sodium Sulfide 100% natural origin

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 Strontium Sulfide 100% natural origin

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Structure

2D structure of Ammonium Thiolactate

azane;2-sulfanylpropanoic acid

PubChem CID 114517 ↗

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 Thiolactate. PubChem CID 114517. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3AMMONIUM THIOLACTATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4AMMONIUM THIOLACTATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=AMMONIUM%20THIOLACTATE