Database/Hair Dyeing/Basic Violet 2
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Basic Violet 2 natural?

Mostly not. Synthetic triarylmethane hair dye supplied as a salt. Only the chloride counter-ion counts as natural origin under the site's mineral counter-ion convention; every carbon in the coloured cation is petrochemical.

INCI nameBasic Violet 2
CAS3248-91-7
FormulaC22H24ClN3 · 365.9 Da
FunctionHair Dyeing
FeedstockPetrochemical aromatic amines and couplers assembled into the…

How we scored it

Basic Violet 2 C22H24ClN3 365.9 Da: chloride counter-ion Cl 35.5 Da is mineral-derived (natural); the triarylmethane dye cation 330.5 Da is built entirely from petrochemical aromatic intermediates → 35.5/365.9 = 0.10.
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

Petrochemical aromatic amines and couplers assembled into the dye cation, isolated as its salt.

In plain English

A synthetic purple dye used in hair colouring products. Chemically a triphenylmethane dye, it's made entirely from petrochemical raw materials.

CosIng definition: Basic Violet 2 is classed chemically as a triphenyl methane colour. It conforms to the formula:

Natural alternatives with the same function

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 Epicatechin 100% natural origin

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 Lawsonia Inermis Extract 100% natural origin

A plant extract from the henna shrub, used to condition hair and skin and add a reddish tint.…

 Pyrogallol 100% natural origin

A hair-dye ingredient traditionally made by heating gallic acid, itself extracted from plant tannins in gallnuts, until it…

Structure

2D structure of Basic Violet 2

4-[(4-amino-3-methylphenyl)-(4-imino-3-methylcyclohexa-2,5-dien-1-ylidene)methyl]-2-methylaniline;hydrochloride

PubChem CID 14454445 ↗

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 Violet 2. PubChem CID 14454445. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3BASIC VIOLET 2. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4BASIC VIOLET 2. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=BASIC%20VIOLET%202