Database/Viscosity Controlling/Quaternium-18 Hectorite
Mostly natural · ISO 16128

Is Quaternium-18 Hectorite natural?

Mostly. Hydrogenated tallow alkyl chains and hectorite clay are natural; the N-methyl quaternary-ammonium portion is petrochemical.

INCI nameQuaternium-18 Hectorite
CAS71011-27-3
FormulaHLiMgNaO11Si4- · 343.6 Da
FunctionViscosity Controlling
FeedstockHectorite clay, a natural smectite mineral, is rendered…

How we scored it

Natural: est. 2x hydrogenated tallow alkyl (~C17) 478.9 + hectorite lattice 343.5 = 822.4 Da. Petrochemical: 2 N-methyl+N 44.1 Da. Est. total ~866.5 Da; 822.4/866.5 = 0.95.
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

Hectorite clay, a natural smectite mineral, is rendered organophilic by treatment with Quaternium-18 (dihydrogenated tallow dimethyl ammonium chloride). The supplied formula covers only the inorganic clay lattice, so the tallow-alkyl cation mass was estimated from typical hydrogenated-tallow chain length.

In plain English

A thickening and gelling agent made from natural clay treated with a tallow-derived conditioning compound. Used to control texture and viscosity in creams and gels.

CosIng definition: Quaternary ammonium compounds, bis(hydrogenated tallow alkyl)dimethyl, chlorides, compds. with hectorite

Natural alternatives with the same function

Agar 100% natural origin

A gelling and thickening gum extracted from red seaweed. It is used to give products body and texture,…

 Agarose 100% natural origin

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 Algin 100% natural origin

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 Alginic Acid 100% natural origin

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 Aluminum Behenate 100% natural origin

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 Aluminum Distearate 100% natural origin

An aluminium salt of stearic acid, a fatty acid from vegetable oil or animal fat. Used in powders…

Structure

2D structure of Quaternium-18 Hectorite

lithium;magnesium;sodium;1,3,5,7-tetraoxido-2,4,6,8,9,10-hexaoxa-1,3,5,7-tetrasilatricyclo[5.1.1.13,5]decane;hydroxide

PubChem CID 72941497 ↗

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. 2Quaternium-18 Hectorite. PubChem CID 72941497. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3QUATERNIUM-18 HECTORITE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4QUATERNIUM-18 HECTORITE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=QUATERNIUM-18%20HECTORITE