Database/Antistatic/Polyquaternium-84
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Polyquaternium-84 natural?

Mostly not. Acrylamide and methacrylate backbones and quaternary ammonium groups come from petrochemical acrylic monomers; only the two ionic chloride counter-ions are mineral origin.

INCI namePolyquaternium-84
FunctionAntistatic · Film Forming
FeedstockMade by free-radical copolymerisation of four petrochemical acrylic…

How we scored it

Assume equimolar monomers: APTAC 206.7 + TMAEMC 207.7 + dimethylacrylamide 99.1 + HEMA 130.1 = 643.7 Da. Ionic chloride 2 x 35.45 = 70.9 Da mineral; 70.9 / 643.7 = 0.11.
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 copolymerisation of four petrochemical acrylic monomers, two of them quaternised with methyl chloride. No natural-origin route is known, and CosIng gives no monomer ratio, so equimolar was assumed.

In plain English

A synthetic cationic polymer that clings to hair and skin, reducing static and forming a thin, flexible film that gives hold in styling products. It is made in a factory by joining acrylic-type monomers derived from petroleum.

CosIng definition: Polyquaternium-84 is a polymeric quaternary ammonium salt of acrylamidopropyltrimethylammonium chloride, trimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, dimethylacrylamide and hydroxyethylmethacrylate

Natural alternatives with the same function

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 Arginine 100% natural origin

An amino acid found in skin and hair proteins, used for conditioning and moisture-binding. Made by fermenting plant…

 Asparagine 100% natural origin

An amino acid made by fermenting plant sugars, similar to other food-fermentation processes. Helps condition hair and skin…

 Aspartic Acid 100% natural origin

An amino acid used for skin conditioning and moisture retention. Usually produced by fermentation or by an enzyme…

 Capryloyl Hydrolyzed Collagen 100% natural origin

Collagen broken into small protein fragments and attached to caprylic acid, an eight-carbon fatty acid from coconut or…

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-84. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3POLYQUATERNIUM-84. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=POLYQUATERNIUM-84