Database/Emulsifying Surfactant/Steareth-10 Phosphate
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Steareth-10 Phosphate natural?

Mostly not. Stearyl alcohol and the mineral phosphate group are natural; the 10-unit ethylene oxide chain is petrochemical.

INCI nameSteareth-10 Phosphate
CAS62362-49-6
FunctionEmulsifying Surfactant · Cleansing Surfactant
FeedstockPhosphate ester of Steareth-10 (stearyl alcohol from vegetable…

How we scored it

Stearyl alcohol(270)+phosphate addition(80)=350 natural; 10 EO×44=441 petrochemical; supplied formula was n=1, recalculated for n=10; 350/791=0.44.
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

Phosphate ester of Steareth-10 (stearyl alcohol from vegetable oil or tallow, ethoxylated with petrochemical ethylene oxide) and mineral phosphoric acid.

In plain English

A cleansing and emulsifying ingredient made from stearyl alcohol, a natural fatty alcohol, combined with a synthetic petrochemical chain and mineral phosphate.

CosIng definition: Steareth-10 Phosphate is a complex mixture of esters of Steareth-10 and phosphoric acid.

Natural alternatives with the same function

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 C10-16 Alkyl Glucoside 100% natural origin

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 C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside 100% natural origin

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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. 2STEARETH-10 PHOSPHATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3STEARETH-10 PHOSPHATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=STEARETH-10%20PHOSPHATE