Database/Emulsifying Surfactant/Deceth-10
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Deceth-10 natural?

Mostly not. Decyl fatty alcohol is oleochemical; 10 moles of petrochemical ethylene oxide dominate the molecule's mass.

INCI nameDeceth-10
CAS26183-52-8
FunctionEmulsifying Surfactant · Cleansing Surfactant
FeedstockOleochemical decyl alcohol is ethoxylated with about 10…

How we scored it

Description states 10 mol EO average, but given formula/MW (202.3) matches only a 1-EO adduct - formula treated as generic/wrong, description trusted. Decyl alcohol 158.3 + 10 EOx44.1=440.5 → 598.8 total; 158.3/598.8 → 0.26
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

Oleochemical decyl alcohol is ethoxylated with about 10 moles of petrochemical ethylene oxide per the CosIng description. The supplied formula (C12H26O2) appears to represent only a single-EO adduct, not the true 10-EO average structure.

In plain English

A surfactant made from a plant-derived fatty alcohol reacted with about ten units of ethylene oxide, a petroleum-based chemical. Used to cleanse and emulsify in personal care products.

CosIng definition: Decanol, ethoxylated (10 mol EO average molar ratio)

Natural alternatives with the same function

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. 2DECETH-10. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3DECETH-10. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=DECETH-10