Database/Emulsifying Surfactant/Sorbitan Stearate
100% natural origin · ISO 16128

Is Sorbitan Stearate natural?

Yes. Both sorbitan and stearic acid are natural-origin oleochemical/sugar-derived building blocks with no synthetic fragment.

INCI nameSorbitan Stearate
CAS1338-41-6
FormulaC24H46O6 · 430.6 Da
FunctionEmulsifying Surfactant
FeedstockMade by esterifying sorbitol, a plant-derived sugar alcohol,…

How we scored it

Sorbitan (from sorbitol) + stearic acid − H2O; both fragments natural; no petrochemical group present. 1.0.
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.

How it’s made

Acid-catalysed ring closure of sorbitol (intramolecular SN2). Sorbitan is the ring at the core of every sorbitan ester and polysorbate. Each curved arrow moves one electron pair, and the film ends on the scores for the whole family.

Where it comes from

Made by esterifying sorbitol, a plant-derived sugar alcohol, with stearic acid from vegetable oil or animal fat. No ethoxylation or other petrochemical step is involved.

In plain English

An emulsifier that helps blend oil and water in creams and lotions. Made by combining sorbitol, a sugar alcohol from plants, with stearic acid, a fatty acid from vegetable or animal fat. No petroleum-derived material is used.

CosIng definition: Sorbitan stearate

Structure

2D structure of Sorbitan Stearate

[(2R)-2-[(2R,3R,4S)-3,4-dihydroxyoxolan-2-yl]-2-hydroxyethyl] octadecanoate

PubChem CID 16218600 ↗

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. 2Sorbitan Stearate. PubChem CID 16218600. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3SORBITAN STEARATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4SORBITAN STEARATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=SORBITAN%20STEARATE