Database/Antistatic/Palmitamide MEA
Mostly natural · ISO 16128

Is Palmitamide MEA natural?

Mostly. Palmitic acid, from palm or vegetable oil, supplies the chain; the MEA cap is petrochemical ethylene-oxide derived.

INCI namePalmitamide MEA
CAS544-31-0
FormulaC18H37NO2 · 299.5 Da
FunctionAntistatic · Foam Boosting Surfactant
FeedstockMade by condensing palmitic acid, commonly from palm…

How we scored it

Palmitoyl C16H31O (239, natural) + hydroxyethylamino C2H6NO (60, ethylene-oxide derived, petrochemical) = 299 -> 239/299.5 = 0.80.
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

Made by condensing palmitic acid, commonly from palm oil, with monoethanolamine, manufactured from petrochemical ethylene oxide and ammonia.

In plain English

A foam-boosting, thickening ingredient made from a common palm-oil fatty acid joined to a small synthetic amino-alcohol. Used in shampoos and body washes.

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Structure

2D structure of Palmitamide MEA

N-(2-hydroxyethyl)hexadecanamide

PubChem CID 4671 ↗

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. 2Palmitamide MEA. PubChem CID 4671. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3PALMITAMIDE MEA. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4PALMITAMIDE MEA. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=PALMITAMIDE%20MEA