Database/Emollient/Isocetyl Laurate
Route-dependent · ISO 16128

Is Isocetyl Laurate natural?

It depends. The lauric acid half is natural oleochemical; whether the isocetyl alcohol half is natural depends on how the Guerbet alcohol was made.

INCI nameIsocetyl Laurate
CAS89527-28-6
FormulaC28H56O2 · 424.7 Da
FunctionEmollient · Skin Conditioning
Feedstockisocetyl alcohol (Guerbet alcohol, natural or petrochemical) esterified…

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
isocetyl alcohol from natural fatty alcoholisocetyl alcohol made by Guerbet dimerisation of coconut/palm-kernel-derived fatty alcohol, esterified with lauric acid1.00common for cosmetic gradesevery atom of the ester is natural origin
isocetyl alcohol from petrochemical fatty alcoholisocetyl alcohol made from Ziegler/oxo (ethylene-derived) fatty alcohol, esterified with lauric acid0.43also commercialonly the lauric acid fragment (183.3 Da of 424.7 Da) is natural origin
Ask your supplier. A batch-specific certificate of origin or bio-based carbon test (ASTM D6866) settles which route applies.

How we scored it

Guerbet alcohols are route-dependent by site policy (see Isocetyl Alcohol and Isocetyl Stearate). Ester 424.7 Da = isocetyl alcohol fragment 241.4 Da + lauric acid acyl 183.3 Da. Natural-alcohol route 1.0; petrochemical-alcohol route 183.3/424.7 = 0.43.
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

isocetyl alcohol (Guerbet alcohol, natural or petrochemical) esterified with lauric acid.

In plain English

A lightweight emollient ester that softens and conditions skin. Made by combining a branched fatty alcohol (produced by joining two coconut-oil-derived alcohol molecules) with lauric acid, also from coconut or palm kernel oil.

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Structure

2D structure of Isocetyl Laurate

14-methylpentadecyl dodecanoate

PubChem CID 15178463 ↗

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. 2Isocetyl Laurate. PubChem CID 15178463. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3ISOCETYL LAURATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4ISOCETYL LAURATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=ISOCETYL%20LAURATE