Nylon-6 has a Natural Origin Index (NOI) of 0.00 (scale 0–1) per ISO 16128. Caprolactam repeat unit derives from petrochemical benzene/phenol via cyclohexanone; no commercially significant bio-based route is used. An NOI of 0.00 means 0% of its molecular mass is traceable to a natural, renewable source.

Is Nylon-6 natural? NOI 0.00 — Is That Natural?

How we scored it

Polycaprolactam; the caprolactam repeat unit is petrochemical (cyclohexanone from benzene/phenol via oxime and Beckmann rearrangement), so the polymer carries no natural mass.

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

Manufactured by ring-opening polymerisation of caprolactam, itself made from cyclohexanone derived from petrochemical benzene or phenol. No commercially significant bio-based caprolactam route exists for cosmetics.

In plain English

A synthetic nylon polymer used as a bulking or texturising powder. Made industrially from caprolactam, a petrochemical building block; contains no natural content.

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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.
2NYLON-6. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
3NYLON-6. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=NYLON-6