Database/Light Stabilizer/Octadecene/MA Copolymer
100% petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Octadecene/MA Copolymer natural?

No. Both monomers are petrochemical: maleic anhydride from benzene/butane, 1-octadecene from ethylene oligomerisation, not oleochemical fatty alcohol.

INCI nameOctadecene/MA Copolymer
CAS25266-02-8
FunctionLight Stabilizer · Viscosity Controlling
FeedstockOctadecene/MA Copolymer is made from maleic anhydride (petrochemical)…

How we scored it

Maleic anhydride (petrochemical, from benzene/butane oxidation) copolymerised with 1-octadecene (petrochemical alpha-olefin from ethylene oligomerisation); no natural fragment despite the C18 chain length.
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

Octadecene/MA Copolymer is made from maleic anhydride (petrochemical) and 1-octadecene, a synthetic alpha-olefin produced by ethylene oligomerisation (Ziegler process), not from natural fatty alcohols. Despite the C18 chain resembling a fatty chain, the conventional industrial route is fully petrochemical.

In plain English

A film-forming, light-stabilising polymer built from two petrochemical building blocks. Although one has a long carbon chain like a natural fat, it is actually made from petroleum-derived ethylene, not plant oils.

CosIng definition: 2,5-Furandione, polymer with 1-octadecene

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