Database/Colorant/Pigment Red 68
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Pigment Red 68 natural?

Mostly not. Calcium, sodium and the two sulfonate groups are mineral; the chloro-carboxy-phenylazo-naphtholate framework, including carbon-bonded chlorine, is built from petrochemical benzene and naphthalene derivatives.

INCI namePigment Red 68
CAS5850-80-6
FormulaC34H18CaCl2N4Na2O12S2 · 895.6 Da
FunctionColorant
FeedstockDominant route: a diazotised aminochlorobenzoic sulfonic acid (petrochemical…

How we scored it

Mineral: Ca 40 + 2 Na 46 + 2 sulfonate SO3 160 = 246 Da; petrochemical azo-naphtholate chlorobenzoate framework incl. C-bonded Cl 649 Da; total 896; 246/896 = 0.27.
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

Dominant route: a diazotised aminochlorobenzoic sulfonic acid (petrochemical aromatics) is coupled to 2-naphthol and laked with calcium and sodium. No natural-origin route exists.

In plain English

A red synthetic azo pigment held as a calcium and sodium salt, used to colour cosmetics. In EU labelling it appears as CI 15525. It is made in a chemical plant from petroleum-derived aromatic compounds.

CosIng definition: Pigment Red 68 is classed chemically as a monoazo color. It conforms to the formula (To identify the colorant allowed for use in the European Union (EU), the INCI Name CI 15525 must be used, except for hair dye products).

Natural alternatives with the same function

Structure

2D structure of Pigment Red 68

calcium;disodium;bis(4-carboxy-5-chloro-2-[(2-oxidonaphthalen-1-yl)diazenyl]benzenesulfonate)

PubChem CID 135565416 ↗

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. 2Pigment Red 68. PubChem CID 135565416. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3PIGMENT RED 68. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4PIGMENT RED 68. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=PIGMENT%20RED%2068