Database/Antistatic/Polyquaternium-5
100% petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Polyquaternium-5 natural?

No. Both acrylamide and the quaternary methacrylate methylsulfate monomer are petrochemical acrylate-family feedstocks.

INCI namePolyquaternium-5
CAS26006-22-4
FunctionAntistatic · Film Forming
FeedstockPolyquaternium-5 is produced by radical copolymerisation of acrylamide…

How we scored it

Copolymer of acrylamide and methacryloyloxyethyltrimethylammonium methylsulfate; both acrylate-family petrochemical 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-5 is produced by radical copolymerisation of acrylamide with a quaternary methacrylate methylsulfate monomer, both petrochemical feedstocks. No natural-origin route exists for this synthetic polymer.

In plain English

An antistatic, film-forming polymer used in hair and skin products. It's manufactured from synthetic acrylamide and a quaternary ammonium acrylate building block.

CosIng definition: Ethanaminium, N,N,N-trimethyl-2-[(2-methyl-1-oxo-2-propenyl)oxy]-, methyl sulfate, polymer with 2-propenamide

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-5. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3POLYQUATERNIUM-5. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=POLYQUATERNIUM-5