Database/Antimicrobial/Germanium Dioxide
100% natural origin · ISO 16128

Is Germanium Dioxide natural?

Yes. Germanium is refined from zinc-ore and coal-ash residues and oxidised, so the whole compound is mineral-derived and counts as natural origin under the site's ISO 16128 mineral convention.

INCI nameGermanium Dioxide
CAS1310-53-8
FormulaGeO2 · 104.63 Da
FunctionAntimicrobial
FeedstockDominant route: germanium recovered from zinc smelter residues…

How we scored it

GeO2: germanium 72.6 + 2 O 32.0 = 104.6; inorganic mineral oxide with no organic atoms (minerals); 104.6/104.6 = 1.00.
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

Dominant route: germanium recovered from zinc smelter residues and coal fly ash, converted to germanium tetrachloride and hydrolysed to the dioxide. No alternative route is commercially significant.

In plain English

An inorganic white oxide of germanium, listed as an antimicrobial ingredient. It is refined from mineral sources, mainly as a by-product of zinc smelting and coal-ash processing.

Structure

2D structure of Germanium Dioxide

germanium(4+);bis(oxygen(2-))

PubChem CID 90478414 ↗

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. 2Germanium Dioxide. PubChem CID 90478414. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3GERMANIUM DIOXIDE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4GERMANIUM DIOXIDE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=GERMANIUM%20DIOXIDE