Database/Emollient/Diisostearyl Fumarate
Mostly natural · ISO 16128

Is Diisostearyl Fumarate natural?

Mostly. Isostearyl alcohol (oleochemical) diester of fumaric acid, which is predominantly made from petrochemical maleic anhydride.

INCI nameDiisostearyl Fumarate
CAS112385-09-8
FormulaC40H76O4 · 621.0 Da
FunctionEmollient · Skin Conditioning
FeedstockIsostearyl alcohol is made from natural fatty acids…

How we scored it

2x isostearyl C18H37O 539Da natural (oleochemical) + fumarate core C4H2O2 82Da petrochemical (maleic-anhydride route dominant) → 539/621 = 0.87.
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

Isostearyl alcohol is made from natural fatty acids via Guerbet-type branching, then esterified with fumaric acid. Commercial fumaric acid is mostly produced by isomerizing petrochemical maleic anhydride; a minor fermentation route from glucose exists.

In plain English

An ester made from isostearyl alcohol (a branched fatty alcohol from vegetable fatty acids) and fumaric acid, a small acid mostly made industrially from petrochemical feedstock. Used as a skin-softening emollient.

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Structure

2D structure of Diisostearyl Fumarate

bis(16-methylheptadecyl) (E)-but-2-enedioate

PubChem CID 22251403 ↗

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. 2Diisostearyl Fumarate. PubChem CID 22251403. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3DIISOSTEARYL FUMARATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4DIISOSTEARYL FUMARATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=DIISOSTEARYL%20FUMARATE