How we scored it
H 1.0 + Cl 35.5 = 36.5. Chlorine from salt brine and hydrogen from brine electrolysis are mineral-derived. 36.5 / 36.5 = 1.0 (by-product HCl would be at least 0.97).
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
Chlorine and hydrogen from salt-brine electrolysis are burned and absorbed in water, or HCl is recovered as a by-product of chlorination plants. Either way the chlorine is salt-derived, and by-product HCl could carry hydrocarbon hydrogen worth only 2.8% of the mass.
In plain English
A strong mineral acid used in small amounts to adjust a product's acidity (pH). It is hydrogen chloride dissolved in water, made from table-salt-derived chlorine.
Structure
chlorane
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.
- 2Hydrochloric Acid. PubChem CID 313. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
- 3HYDROCHLORIC ACID. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
- 4HYDROCHLORIC ACID. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=HYDROCHLORIC%20ACID