Database/Hair Fixing/Polyquaternium-55
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Polyquaternium-55 natural?

Mostly not. The lauryl group traces to coconut or palm-kernel fatty alcohol and the chloride is a mineral counter-ion. The DMAPA-methacrylamide and vinylpyrrolidone monomers are petrochemical acrylate and vinyl chemistry.

INCI namePolyquaternium-55
CAS306769-73-3
FunctionHair Fixing
FeedstockBuilt from synthetic acrylate and vinyl monomers plus…

How we scored it

Assuming equal molar amounts of three monomers, one set weighs 656 Da: the lauryl quaternary methacrylamide 375 Da, DMAPA-methacrylamide 170 Da and vinylpyrrolidone 111 Da. Natural origin is the lauryl chain C12H25 (169.33 Da) plus the chloride counter-ion (35.45 Da) = 204.78 Da, so 204.78/656 = 0.31.
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

Built from synthetic acrylate and vinyl monomers plus one quaternary ammonium monomer carrying a coconut-derived C12 chain and a chloride counter-ion. No monomer ratio was supplied, so roughly equal molar proportions were assumed.

In plain English

A synthetic conditioning polymer used to help fix hair styles. It's built mainly from lab-made acrylate-type building blocks, with a small coconut-derived fatty component attached.

CosIng definition: N,N-Dimethyl-N-[3-(2-methyl-2-propenoyl)aminopropyl]-1-dodecanaminium chloride, polymer with N-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-2-methyl-2-propenamide and 1-ethenyl-2-pyrrolidinone

Natural alternatives with the same function

Chitosan 100% natural origin

A film-forming, hair-fixing polysaccharide derived from chitin, the natural material in crustacean shells. Treating chitin with a mild…

 Chitosan Lactate 100% natural origin

A film-forming, hair-fixing polymer made from chitosan, from crustacean shells or fungi, combined with lactic acid, a fermentation-derived…

 Decapeptide-11 100% natural origin

A lab-assembled peptide made from natural amino acids, used to condition hair and help fix style. All of…

 Dehydroxanthan Gum 100% natural origin

A thickener made by removing water from fermentation-derived xanthan gum, used to stabilise formulas and hair-styling products.

 Oleuropein 100% natural origin

A powerful antioxidant compound naturally abundant in olive leaves. It's extracted directly from the leaves, not manufactured.

 Rhizobian Gum 100% natural origin

A polysaccharide gum made by fermenting sugars with Rhizobium bacteria. Used to form films, fix hairstyles, and control…

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-55. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3POLYQUATERNIUM-55. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=POLYQUATERNIUM-55