Database/Cleansing Surfactant/PEG-90 Stearate
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is PEG-90 Stearate natural?

Mostly not. A very long 90-unit petrochemical polyethylene glycol chain heavily dilutes the natural stearic acid backbone.

INCI namePEG-90 Stearate
CAS9004-99-3
FunctionCleansing Surfactant
FeedstockMade by ethoxylating stearic acid (vegetable oil-derived) with…

How we scored it

Stearic acid 284.5 Da (natural) + 90x44.05 Da ethylene oxide (petrochemical) = 284.5/4249.4 = 0.07; supplied formula/MW match only the 1-EO adduct, so description's 90 mol EO was used.
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 ethoxylating stearic acid (vegetable oil-derived) with 90 moles of ethylene oxide. No natural ethoxylation route exists.

In plain English

A cleansing ingredient made from natural stearic acid, a vegetable fat, joined to a very long synthetic ethylene-oxide chain.

CosIng definition: Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), .alpha.-(1-oxooctadecyl)-.omega.-hydroxy- (90 mol EO average molar ratio)

Natural alternatives with the same function

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 Behenic Acid 100% natural origin

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 C10-16 Alkyl Glucoside 100% natural origin

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 C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside 100% natural origin

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 C18-36 Acid 100% natural origin

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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. 2PEG-90 STEARATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3PEG-90 STEARATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=PEG-90%20STEARATE