Database/Antistatic/Polyquaternium-16
100% petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Polyquaternium-16 natural?

No. Both the vinylimidazolium salt and vinylpyrrolidone monomers are synthesised from petrochemical Reppe-chemistry feedstocks.

INCI namePolyquaternium-16
CAS95144-24-4
FormulaC12H18ClN3O · 255.74 Da
FunctionAntistatic · Film Forming
FeedstockPolyquaternium-16 is produced by copolymerising 1-vinyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride with…

How we scored it

Copolymer of vinylmethylimidazolium chloride and vinylpyrrolidone; both petrochemical Reppe-chemistry (acetylene-derived) monomers => 0.0
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

Polyquaternium-16 is produced by copolymerising 1-vinyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride with vinylpyrrolidone, both synthesised from petrochemical acetylene-derived (Reppe chemistry) feedstocks. No natural-origin route exists for this synthetic polymer.

In plain English

An antistatic, film-forming polymer used in hair styling and conditioning products. It's built from two synthetic building blocks: a vinylimidazolium salt and vinylpyrrolidone, the polymer familiar from hairspray.

CosIng definition: 1H-Imidazolium, 1-ethenyl-3-methyl-, chloride, polymer with 1-ethenyl-2-pyrrolidinone

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Structure

2D structure of Polyquaternium-16

1-ethenyl-3-methylimidazol-3-ium;1-ethenylpyrrolidin-2-one;chloride

PubChem CID 163647 ↗

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-16. PubChem CID 163647. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3POLYQUATERNIUM-16. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4POLYQUATERNIUM-16. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=POLYQUATERNIUM-16