Database/Film Forming/Cellulose Acetate Butyrate
Mostly natural · ISO 16128

Is Cellulose Acetate Butyrate natural?

Mostly. Cellulose backbone (wood pulp/cotton) is natural; acetate and butyrate ester caps are petrochemical acyl groups.

INCI nameCellulose Acetate Butyrate
CAS9004-36-8
FunctionFilm Forming
FeedstockWood-pulp or cotton cellulose is esterified with acetic…

How we scored it

AGU 162 Da (natural) + acetyl DS 0.5 (petrochemical, 21 Da) + butyryl DS 1.8 (petrochemical, 126 Da), typical CAB. 162/309 = 0.52
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

Wood-pulp or cotton cellulose is esterified with acetic and butyric anhydrides (petrochemical acyl donors). Degree of substitution varies by grade; a typical commercial CAB was assumed.

In plain English

A plant-cellulose plastic used as a film-former in nail and hair products. The cellulose backbone comes from wood pulp, but it's chemically capped with lab-made acetate and butyrate groups.

CosIng definition: Cellulose, acetates, butanoates

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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. 2CELLULOSE ACETATE BUTYRATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3CELLULOSE ACETATE BUTYRATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=CELLULOSE%20ACETATE%20BUTYRATE