Database/Film Forming/Polyvinylcaprolactam
100% petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Polyvinylcaprolactam natural?

No. N-vinylcaprolactam monomer derives from petrochemical cyclohexanone; the polymer contains no natural-origin carbon.

INCI namePolyvinylcaprolactam
CAS25189-83-7
FunctionFilm Forming · Hair Fixing
FeedstockManufactured by free-radical polymerisation of N-vinylcaprolactam, itself made…

How we scored it

Homopolymer of N-vinylcaprolactam; caprolactam made from cyclohexanone (petrochemical) via Beckmann route, no natural fragment.
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

Manufactured by free-radical polymerisation of N-vinylcaprolactam, itself made from petrochemical cyclohexanone via caprolactam and N-vinylation. No commercially significant natural route exists.

In plain English

A synthetic film-forming polymer used to hold hair styles in place, made entirely from petroleum-derived building blocks. It has no natural content.

CosIng definition: 2H-Azepin-2-one, 1-ethenylhexahydro-, homopolymer

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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. 2POLYVINYLCAPROLACTAM. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3POLYVINYLCAPROLACTAM. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=POLYVINYLCAPROLACTAM