Database/Emulsifying Surfactant/TEA-Laurate
Mostly natural · ISO 16128

Is TEA-Laurate natural?

Mostly. Lauric acid comes from coconut or palm kernel oil, while triethanolamine is made from ethylene oxide and ammonia and counts as petrochemical.

INCI nameTEA-Laurate
CAS2224-49-9
FormulaC18H39NO5 · 349.5 Da
FunctionEmulsifying Surfactant · Foaming
FeedstockDominant route: neutralisation of coconut or palm kernel…

How we scored it

Lauric acid C12H24O2 200.3 natural + triethanolamine C6H15NO3 149.2 petrochemical (ethylene oxide, ammonia); 200.3/349.5 = 0.57.
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

Dominant route: neutralisation of coconut or palm kernel lauric acid with petrochemical triethanolamine. No alternative route is commercially significant.

In plain English

A soap-like salt of lauric acid and triethanolamine. It cleanses, builds foam and helps oil and water mix. Lauric acid comes from coconut or palm kernel oil; triethanolamine is made from ethylene oxide and ammonia.

Natural alternatives with the same function

Structure

2D structure of TEA-Laurate

2-[bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amino]ethanol;dodecanoic acid

PubChem CID 62441 ↗

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. 2TEA-Laurate. PubChem CID 62441. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3TEA-LAURATE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4TEA-LAURATE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=TEA-LAURATE