Database/Emulsifying Surfactant/PEG-7 Hydrogenated Castor Oil
Mostly natural · ISO 16128

Is PEG-7 Hydrogenated Castor Oil natural?

Mostly. The hydrogenated castor oil triglyceride is oleochemical; the polyethylene glycol chain is built from petrochemical ethylene oxide.

INCI namePEG-7 Hydrogenated Castor Oil
CAS61788-85-0
FunctionEmulsifying Surfactant · Cleansing Surfactant
FeedstockHydrogenated castor oil (from Ricinus communis seed oil)…

How we scored it

Hydrogenated castor oil ~948 Da (natural) + 7 EO x 44 Da = 308 Da (petrochemical) = 1256 Da; 948/1256 = 0.75
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

Hydrogenated castor oil (from Ricinus communis seed oil) is reacted with an average of 7 moles of ethylene oxide. The oil portion is renewable; the added EO chain is petrochemical.

In plain English

An emulsifying and cleansing ingredient made from castor bean oil that has been hardened (hydrogenated) and reacted with ethylene oxide, a petroleum-based chemical, to make it blend with water.

CosIng definition: Castor oil (Ricinus communis), hydrogenated, ethoxylated (7 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-7 HYDROGENATED CASTOR OIL. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3PEG-7 HYDROGENATED 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-7%20HYDROGENATED%20CASTOR%20OIL