Database/Light Stabilizer/Potassium Thiocyanate
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Potassium Thiocyanate natural?

Mostly not. Potassium is a natural mineral cation; thiocyanate is industrially made from hydrogen cyanide or coal-gas byproducts, fossil-carbon chemistry like urea.

INCI namePotassium Thiocyanate
CAS333-20-0
FormulaCKNS · 97.18 Da
FunctionLight Stabilizer
FeedstockPotassium comes from mined potash; the thiocyanate ion…

How we scored it

K+ (39.1/97.2) mineral cation, natural; SCN- (58.1/97.2) treated as petrochemical, by analogy to urea/allantoin (HCN/cyanide route from natural-gas ammonia). 39.1/97.2 = 0.40.
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

Potassium comes from mined potash; the thiocyanate ion is made from hydrogen cyanide (natural-gas/ammonia route, Andrussow process) or as a coke-oven gas purification byproduct. No biological production route is used commercially.

In plain English

A simple mineral-and-synthetic salt of potassium, used in small amounts to help protect a formula from light.

Natural alternatives with the same function

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 Beta-Sitosterol 100% natural origin

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 Cholesterol 100% natural origin

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 Esculin 100% natural origin

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 Glucose Oxidase 100% natural origin

An enzyme made by fermenting a common fungus, used in small amounts to help stabilise formulas. Note: the…

 Hydrogenated Tallow Glyceride 100% natural origin

An emollient and thickener made by combining animal fat (tallow) with glycerin, then hardening it through hydrogenation. It…

Structure

2D structure of Potassium Thiocyanate

potassium thiocyanate

PubChem CID 516872 ↗

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. 2Potassium Thiocyanate. PubChem CID 516872. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3POTASSIUM THIOCYANATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4POTASSIUM THIOCYANATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=POTASSIUM%20THIOCYANATE