Database/Emulsifying Surfactant/PPG-12-PEG-50 Lanolin
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is PPG-12-PEG-50 Lanolin natural?

Mostly not. Lanolin wax is natural; the propylene oxide and ethylene oxide chains are both petrochemical.

INCI namePPG-12-PEG-50 Lanolin
CAS68458-88-8
FunctionEmulsifying Surfactant · Hair Conditioning
FeedstockLanolin wax is propoxylated and ethoxylated with petrochemical…

How we scored it

Lanolin ~550 Da (natural wax) + 12 PO x 58.08 = 697 Da + 50 EO x 44.05 = 2202.5 Da (both petrochemical) = 550/3449.5 = 0.16
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

Lanolin wax is propoxylated and ethoxylated with petrochemical propylene oxide and ethylene oxide. No natural alternative to the alkoxylation exists.

In plain English

An emulsifying and conditioning ingredient made from lanolin (wool grease) heavily reacted with petrochemical propylene oxide and ethylene oxide.

CosIng definition: Lanolin, ethoxylated, propoxylated

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. 2PPG-12-PEG-50 LANOLIN. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3PPG-12-PEG-50 LANOLIN. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=PPG-12-PEG-50%20LANOLIN