Database/Antimicrobial/Sodium Isobutylparaben
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Sodium Isobutylparaben natural?

Mostly not. The paraben (p-hydroxybenzoate ester) core is a petrochemical phenol derivative by this site's convention; sodium is the only natural mass.

INCI nameSodium Isobutylparaben
CAS84930-15-4
FormulaC11H13NaO3 · 216.21 Da
FunctionAntimicrobial
FeedstockManufactured by esterifying petrochemical p-hydroxybenzoic acid with isobutanol,…

How we scored it

Isobutylparaben core (193.22 Da, petrochemical phenol ester) + Na+ (22.99 Da, mineral, natural) → 22.99/216.21 = 0.11.
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 esterifying petrochemical p-hydroxybenzoic acid with isobutanol, then neutralizing with sodium hydroxide. No natural production route exists for parabens.

In plain English

A synthetic paraben preservative (sodium salt) that protects cosmetic formulas from microbial growth.

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Structure

2D structure of Sodium Isobutylparaben

sodium 4-(2-methylpropoxycarbonyl)phenolate

PubChem CID 23662515 ↗

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. 2Sodium Isobutylparaben. PubChem CID 23662515. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3SODIUM ISOBUTYLPARABEN. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4SODIUM ISOBUTYLPARABEN. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=SODIUM%20ISOBUTYLPARABEN