Database/Antistatic/Polyquaternium-14
100% petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Polyquaternium-14 natural?

No. Every fragment - the methacrylate backbone, quaternary trimethylammonium group, and methylsulfate counter-ion - traces to petrochemical feedstocks.

INCI namePolyquaternium-14
CAS27103-90-8
FunctionAntistatic · Film Forming
FeedstockMade by free-radical homopolymerization of a methacrylate ester…

How we scored it

Homopolymer of methacryloyloxyethyl trimethylammonium methylsulfate; methacrylate ester, trimethylammonium and methosulfate counter-ion are all petrochemical.
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 free-radical homopolymerization of a methacrylate ester quaternized with trimethylamine and dimethyl sulfate. All starting materials are synthetic/petrochemical.

In plain English

A fully synthetic, positively-charged polymer built entirely from petrochemical acrylic building blocks. Used in hair products to reduce static and help styling products form a film.

CosIng definition: Ethanaminium, N,N,N-trimethyl-2-[(2-methyl-1-oxo-2-propenyl)oxy]-, methylsulfate, homopolymer

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. 2POLYQUATERNIUM-14. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3POLYQUATERNIUM-14. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=POLYQUATERNIUM-14