How we scored it
Xylitol C5H12O5 (152.15 Da, natural, hemicellulose-derived) loses one H2O (18.0) in acid-catalysed intramolecular ring closure to give anhydroxylitol C5H10O4 (134.13 Da, matches); condensation water is not petroleum mass; 1.0.
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
Made by cyclodehydrating xylitol, a sugar alcohol derived from corn cob or birch hemicellulose. No petrochemical reagent mass remains in the final molecule.
In plain English
A moisture-binding ingredient made from xylitol, a plant-derived sugar alcohol, with one water molecule removed to form a small ring; it helps keep skin hydrated.
Structure
(2R,3R,4S)-2-(hydroxymethyl)oxolane-3,4-diol
References
- 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.
- 2Anhydroxylitol. PubChem CID 104501. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
- 3ANHYDROXYLITOL. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
- 4ANHYDROXYLITOL. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=ANHYDROXYLITOL