How we scored it
Gallic-acid fragment (from tannin hydrolysis) + dodecanol fragment, both natural, condensed with loss of water: C7H6O5 170.1 + C12H26O 186.3 - H2O 18.0 = 338.4 Da, all-natural -> 1.0.
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
Made by esterifying gallic acid, obtained by hydrolysing natural plant tannins (gallnuts, tara pods, sumac), with dodecanol, a fatty alcohol typically derived from coconut or palm kernel oil. A minority of dodecanol supply is petrochemical (Ziegler-process), which would lower this value.
In plain English
An antioxidant made by combining a natural plant-tannin acid with a fatty alcohol usually derived from coconut or palm oil, used to stop oils in a product turning rancid.
Structure
dodecyl 3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoate
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.
- 2Dodecyl Gallate. PubChem CID 14425. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
- 3DODECYL GALLATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
- 4DODECYL GALLATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=DODECYL%20GALLATE