Database/Perfuming/Isoamyl Alcohol
Route-dependent · ISO 16128

Is Isoamyl Alcohol natural?

It depends. Isoamyl alcohol occurs naturally in fusel oil but most commercial flavour/fragrance-grade material is petrochemically synthesised from pentane derivatives.

INCI nameIsoamyl Alcohol
CAS123-51-3
FormulaC5H12O · 88.15 Da
FunctionPerfuming · Flavouring
FeedstockMajority of supply is synthesised from petrochemical amylenes…

Why the score varies

This ingredient is made commercially by more than one route, and ISO 16128 scores the feedstock actually used. Without a supplier certificate of origin the value cannot be claimed.

RouteFeedstockNOIShareNotes
Petrochemical synthesisAmylenes/pentane (oxo or chlorination route)0.00majority
Fusel oil isolationFermentation/distillation byproduct1.00minority, premium natural grade
Ask your supplier. A batch-specific certificate of origin or bio-based carbon test (ASTM D6866) settles which route applies.

How we scored it

Route-dependent: natural fusel-oil isolation (fermentation byproduct) = 1.0; petrochemical synthesis from amylenes/pentane = 0.0. Bulk commodity/flavour-grade supply is predominantly synthetic.
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

Majority of supply is synthesised from petrochemical amylenes or pentane. A natural route exists via isolation from fusel oil, a fermentation/distillation byproduct, sold as a premium natural grade.

In plain English

An alcohol used as a fragrance and flavour ingredient with a fruity, banana-like note. Occurs naturally as a fermentation byproduct, but most commercial supply is made synthetically.

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Structure

2D structure of Isoamyl Alcohol

3-methylbutan-1-ol

PubChem CID 31260 ↗

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. 2Isoamyl Alcohol. PubChem CID 31260. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3ISOAMYL ALCOHOL. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4ISOAMYL ALCOHOL. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=ISOAMYL%20ALCOHOL