Database/Emulsifying Surfactant/Steareth-13
Mostly petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Steareth-13 natural?

Mostly not. The natural fatty-alcohol fraction continues to fall as more petrochemical ethylene oxide is added.

INCI nameSteareth-13
FunctionEmulsifying Surfactant · Cleansing Surfactant
FeedstockMade by ethoxylating oleochemical stearyl alcohol with petrochemical…

How we scored it

Stearyl alcohol 270.5 Da (natural) + 13x EO 572.7 Da (petrochemical) = 843.2 Da. 270.5/843.2 = 0.32.
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 ethoxylating oleochemical stearyl alcohol with petrochemical ethylene oxide, at 13 mol EO average.

In plain English

Steareth-13 is a cleansing and emulsifying ingredient made by combining a fat-derived fatty alcohol with ethylene oxide, a petroleum-based chemical.

CosIng definition: Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), .alpha.-octadecyl-.omega.-hydroxy

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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-13. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  3. 3STEARETH-13. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=STEARETH-13