Database/Gel Forming/Stearalkonium Bentonite
Mostly natural · ISO 16128

Is Stearalkonium Bentonite natural?

Mostly. Bentonite clay is a mineral, the C18 chain is oleochemical and the chloride is a mineral counter-ion, so all three count as natural origin. Only the benzyl and dimethylamino parts of the quaternary head, made from benzyl chloride and methanol, are petrochemical.

INCI nameStearalkonium Bentonite
CAS130501-87-0
FormulaC27H52Al2ClNO12Si4 · 784.5 Da
FunctionGel Forming · Viscosity Controlling
FeedstockNatural bentonite clay is reacted with stearalkonium chloride,…

How we scored it

The supplied formula C27H52Al2ClNO12Si4 weighs 784.47 Da. Natural origin is the bentonite lattice Al2Si4O12 (358.29 Da) plus the octadecyl chain C18H37 (253.50 Da) plus the chloride counter-ion (35.45 Da) = 647.24 Da. Petrochemical is the benzyl group C7H7 (91.13 Da) plus the dimethylamino nitrogen (44.08 Da) = 135.21 Da. So 647.24/784.47 = 0.83.
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

Natural bentonite clay is reacted with stearalkonium chloride, a quaternary ammonium compound made from benzyl chloride, methanol and a C18 fatty alcohol. The clay and the fatty chain dominate the mass.

In plain English

A thickening, gel-forming ingredient made by treating natural clay (bentonite) with a fatty quaternary ammonium compound. Mostly clay and fatty-chain material, with a smaller synthetic surfactant component.

CosIng definition: Benzenemethanaminium, N,N-dimethyl-N-octadecyl-, reaction products with bentonite

Structure

2D structure of Stearalkonium Bentonite

dialuminum;benzyl-dimethyl-octadecylazanium;tetrakis(dioxosilane);tris(oxygen(2-));chloride;hydrate

PubChem CID 172866721 ↗

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. 2Stearalkonium Bentonite. PubChem CID 172866721. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3STEARALKONIUM BENTONITE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4STEARALKONIUM BENTONITE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=STEARALKONIUM%20BENTONITE