Database/Emollient/PEG-20 Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is PEG-20 Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides natural?

Mostly not. Palm-oil glyceride backbone is natural; the 20 ethoxylate units are petrochemical ethylene oxide.

INCI namePEG-20 Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides
FunctionEmollient · Emulsifying Surfactant
FeedstockMade by hydrogenating palm oil to mono/diglycerides, then…

How we scored it

Base hydrogenated palm mono/diglyceride ~358 Da (natural) + 20x44=880 Da ethylene oxide (petrochemical) = 1238 Da; 358/1238=0.29.
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 hydrogenating palm oil to mono/diglycerides, then reacting with about 20 mol of petrochemical ethylene oxide. No non-ethoxylated alternative gives the same emulsifying function.

In plain English

An emulsifier made from palm oil combined with a petrochemical ingredient, helping mix water and oil together in creams and lotions.

CosIng definition: Glycerides, hydrogenated palm oil mono- and di-, ethoxylated (20 mol EO average molar ratio)

Natural alternatives with the same function

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