Database/Antistatic/Quaternium-52
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Quaternium-52 natural?

Mostly not. Fatty C18 tail is oleochemical and phosphate counterion is mineral; the ethoxylated triethanolamine core and PEG chain are petrochemical.

INCI nameQuaternium-52
CAS58069-11-7
FunctionAntistatic · Hair Conditioning
FeedstockMade by quaternising ethoxylated triethanolamine (petrochemical) with an…

How we scored it

Octadecyl (natural, ~253Da) + phosphate (mineral, ~96Da) = ~349 natural; tris(hydroxyethyl) core from triethanolamine plus PEG arms (petrochemical, EO~12 assumed) = ~661; 349/1010 ≈ 0.35.
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 quaternising ethoxylated triethanolamine (petrochemical) with an oleochemical octadecyl fatty group, then phosphating. CosIng does not disclose the exact PEG chain length, so composition is estimated.

In plain English

An antistatic, hair-conditioning ingredient combining a fatty tail with a synthetic, ethylene-oxide-based ammonium core and a mineral phosphate group.

CosIng definition: Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), ((octadecylnitrilio)tri-2,1-ethanediyl)tris(hydroxy)- phosphate (1:1) (salt)

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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. 2QUATERNIUM-52. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3QUATERNIUM-52. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=QUATERNIUM-52