How we scored it
Hydrosol: water (n = 1) plus trace volatile plant terpenoids and alcohols from the steam distillate (n = 1). No other atoms. 1.0 / 1.0 = 1.00.
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
Dominant route is steam distillation of olibanum (Boswellia serrata oleo-gum resin, mainly from India), collecting the aqueous condensate as a hydrosol after the essential oil is separated. No commercially significant alternative route exists.
In plain English
The scented water left after steam-distilling the resin of the Indian frankincense tree (Boswellia serrata). It is mostly water carrying traces of the resin's aroma compounds and is listed as a skin-conditioning ingredient.
CosIng definition: Boswellia Serrata Water is an aqueous solution of the steam distillate obtained from the olibanum Boswellia serrata, Burseraceae
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.
- 2BOSWELLIA SERRATA WATER. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
- 3BOSWELLIA SERRATA WATER. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=BOSWELLIA%20SERRATA%20WATER