Database/Cleansing Surfactant/Macadamiamidopropyl Betaine
Mostly natural · ISO 16128

Is Macadamiamidopropyl Betaine natural?

Mostly. Macadamia oil fatty acids are natural, but dimethylaminopropylamine and the chloroacetate-derived carboxymethyl group are petrochemical.

INCI nameMacadamiamidopropyl Betaine
FunctionCleansing Surfactant · Viscosity Controlling
FeedstockDominant route: macadamia oil fatty acids are amidated…

How we scored it

Natural: macadamia acyl, mean about 260 Da (mostly C18:1 and C16:1). Petrochemical: NH-C3H6-N(CH3)2 101.2 (DMAPA) + CH2COO 58.0 (chloroacetate) = 159.2. Total 419.2; 260/419.2 = 0.62.
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: macadamia oil fatty acids are amidated with DMAPA and the amine is quaternised with sodium chloroacetate. No second route is commercially significant.

In plain English

A cleansing, foam-boosting and thickening surfactant used in shampoos and washes. It is made from macadamia nut oil fatty acids joined to a synthetic dimethylaminopropylamine, with a betaine head group built using chloroacetate.

CosIng definition: Macadamiamidopropyl Betaine is the zwitterion that conforms generally to the formula where RCO- represents the fatty acids dervived from Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil

Natural alternatives with the same function

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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. 2MACADAMIAMIDOPROPYL BETAINE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3MACADAMIAMIDOPROPYL BETAINE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=MACADAMIAMIDOPROPYL%20BETAINE