Database/Cleansing/Ceteareth-25
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Ceteareth-25 natural?

Mostly not. The cetearyl alcohol base is oleochemical and natural, but the long 25-unit ethylene oxide chain dominates the molecule's mass.

INCI nameCeteareth-25
CAS68439-49-6
FunctionCleansing · Emulsifying Surfactant
FeedstockCetearyl alcohol, a blend of C16 and C18…

How we scored it

Cetearyl alcohol (avg C16-18, natural, 256 Da) + 25 mol ethylene oxide chain (petrochemical, 25×44=1101 Da) = 1358 Da total; 256/1358 ≈ 0.19.
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

Cetearyl alcohol, a blend of C16 and C18 fatty alcohols from vegetable oil or tallow, is reacted with petrochemical ethylene oxide to form this ethoxylated ether. The long PEG-like chain makes up most of the ingredient's weight.

In plain English

An emulsifier and cleansing ingredient made by attaching a fatty alcohol, from plant oil or tallow, to a long chain of synthetic ethylene oxide units. Most of its weight comes from that synthetic chain rather than the natural fatty part.

CosIng definition: C16-18 alcohols, ethoxylated (25 mol EO average molar ratio)

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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. 2CETEARETH-25. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3CETEARETH-25. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=CETEARETH-25