Database/Antistatic/Polyquaternium-15
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Polyquaternium-15 natural?

Mostly not. Both the methacrylamide and methacrylate-quaternary-ammonium monomers are petrochemical acrylates; only the chloride counter-ion contributes a small natural-mineral mass fraction.

INCI namePolyquaternium-15
CAS35429-19-7
FunctionAntistatic · Film Forming
FeedstockMade by copolymerizing methacrylamide with a methacrylate-based quaternary…

How we scored it

Assume ~1:1 mol methacrylamide:MADQUAT. Methacrylamide (85.1 Da) all petrochemical; MADQUAT (207.7 Da, C9H18ClNO2) natural Cl only (35.45). (0+35.45)/(85.1+207.7) = 0.12.
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 copolymerizing methacrylamide with a methacrylate-based quaternary ammonium chloride monomer, both petrochemical. The chloride counter-ion is the only natural-mineral fragment.

In plain English

A fully synthetic, positively-charged polymer built from petrochemical acrylamide and acrylate building blocks. Used in hair-styling and conditioning products to reduce static and help films form.

CosIng definition: Polyquaternium-15 is the polymeric quaternary ammonium salt formed from Methacrylamide (q.v.) and betamethacrylyloxyethyl trimethyl ammonium chloride.

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-15. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3POLYQUATERNIUM-15. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=POLYQUATERNIUM-15