Database/Fragrance/Hexadecanolactone
100% petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Hexadecanolactone natural?

No. Macrocyclic musk lactones are built synthetically from petrochemical ring precursors and are not isolated from any natural source at commercial scale. Same ruling as Pentadecalactone.

INCI nameHexadecanolactone
CAS109-29-5
FormulaC16H30O2 · 254.41 Da
FunctionFragrance · Perfuming
FeedstockPetrochemical cyclohexadecanone or cyclopentadecanone precursors converted to the…

How we scored it

C16H30O2 254.4 Da macrocyclic lactone. Commercial material is made by ring-expansion/oxidation of petrochemical cyclic ketones (cyclopentadecanone/cyclohexadecanone chemistry), so 0/254.4 = 0.0. A shellac (aleuritic acid) route exists for the unsaturated homologue ambrettolide but is not how the saturated 16-lactone is supplied.
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

Petrochemical cyclohexadecanone or cyclopentadecanone precursors converted to the macrolactone.

In plain English

A musky-smelling fragrance ingredient that can be made either from natural fatty materials via fermentation or fully synthesised from petrochemical starting materials. Gives perfumes a soft, musky base note.

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Structure

2D structure of Hexadecanolactone

oxacycloheptadecan-2-one

PubChem CID 7984 ↗

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. 2Hexadecanolactone. PubChem CID 7984. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3HEXADECANOLACTONE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4HEXADECANOLACTONE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=HEXADECANOLACTONE