Database/Uv Absorber/Ethyl Methoxycinnamate
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Ethyl Methoxycinnamate natural?

Mostly not. Ethoxy comes from fermentation ethanol; the methoxycinnamoyl chromophore is built from petrochemical anisaldehyde (benzene-derived) and an acetic or malonic acid unit.

INCI nameEthyl Methoxycinnamate
CAS99880-64-5
FormulaC12H14O3 · 206.24 Da
FunctionUv Absorber
FeedstockSynthesised by condensing 4-methoxybenzaldehyde with an acetic or…

How we scored it

Ethoxy C2H5O 45.1 natural if fermentation ethanol; methoxycinnamoyl C10H9O2 161.2 petrochemical (aromatic chromophore). 45.1 / 206.2 = 0.22. Synthetic ethanol would give 0.0.
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

Synthesised by condensing 4-methoxybenzaldehyde with an acetic or malonic acid unit and esterifying with ethanol. The same ester can be isolated from Kaempferia galanga (kencur) rhizome, which would be natural origin, but this is a minor supply.

In plain English

A sunscreen ingredient that absorbs UV-B light, similar to octinoxate but with a smaller ethyl group. It is usually made in a lab from petrochemical benzene-based materials, though the same molecule occurs in kencur ginger.

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Structure

2D structure of Ethyl Methoxycinnamate

ethyl (E)-3-(4-methoxyphenyl)prop-2-enoate

PubChem CID 5281783 ↗

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. 2Ethyl Methoxycinnamate. PubChem CID 5281783. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3ETHYL METHOXYCINNAMATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4ETHYL METHOXYCINNAMATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=ETHYL%20METHOXYCINNAMATE