How we scored it
Where it comes from
Castor oil (Ricinus communis) is ethoxylated with 40 moles of ethylene oxide to make this water-soluble emulsifier. The oil is renewable but is a minor mass fraction next to the large PEG chain.
In plain English
An emulsifier made from castor bean oil reacted with a large amount of ethylene oxide, a petroleum-based chemical, to make it blend with water. Used to combine oil and water ingredients.
CosIng definition: Castor oil, ethoxylated (40 mol EO average molar ratio)
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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.
- 2PEG-40 CASTOR OIL. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
- 3PEG-40 CASTOR OIL. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=PEG-40%20CASTOR%20OIL