Database/Preservative/Benzylhemiformal
100% petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Benzylhemiformal natural?

No. Both the benzyl alcohol and formaldehyde building blocks are petrochemical in commercial production.

INCI nameBenzylhemiformal
CAS14548-60-8
FormulaC8H10O2 · 138.16 Da
FunctionPreservative
FeedstockBenzylhemiformal is manufactured by reacting benzyl alcohol with…

How we scored it

Phenylmethoxymethanol is the condensate of benzyl alcohol and formaldehyde, both petrochemical → 0/138.16 = 0.0.
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

Benzylhemiformal is manufactured by reacting benzyl alcohol with formaldehyde, both petrochemical feedstocks. No natural production route exists.

In plain English

A preservative made from benzyl alcohol and formaldehyde. Both are petrochemical raw materials, so it is entirely synthetic in origin.

CosIng definition: Benzylhemiformal is the organic compound that conforms to the formula:

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Structure

2D structure of Benzylhemiformal

phenylmethoxymethanol

PubChem CID 84520 ↗

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. 2Benzylhemiformal. PubChem CID 84520. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3BENZYLHEMIFORMAL. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4BENZYLHEMIFORMAL. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=BENZYLHEMIFORMAL