Database/Hair Dyeing/Basic Red 118
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Basic Red 118 natural?

Mostly not. Synthetic nitro/amino-substituted naphthalene azo dye cation; only the chloride counter-ion is mineral-derived.

INCI nameBasic Red 118
CAS71134-97-9
FormulaC19H20ClN5O3 · 401.8 Da
FunctionHair Dyeing
FeedstockManufactured by diazotisation and coupling of synthetic nitroaniline…

How we scored it

Naphthalene azo-dye cation (~366 Da, synthetic, petrochemical, nitro/amino substituted) + chloride counter-ion (35.45 Da, mineral, natural) → 35.45/401.8 = 0.09.
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

Manufactured by diazotisation and coupling of synthetic nitroaniline and naphthol intermediates, isolated as the chloride salt. No natural-origin route exists.

In plain English

A synthetic dye used to colour hair red. Built from a petrochemical aromatic dye molecule; only its chloride counter-ion is mineral-derived.

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 Lawsonia Inermis Extract 100% natural origin

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 Pyrogallol 100% natural origin

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Structure

2D structure of Basic Red 118

[8-[(4-amino-2-nitrophenyl)diazenyl]-7-hydroxynaphthalen-2-yl]-trimethylazanium chloride

PubChem CID 135487619 ↗

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. 2Basic Red 118. PubChem CID 135487619. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3BASIC RED 118. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4BASIC RED 118. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=BASIC%20RED%20118