Ceteth-3 ●
TL;DR. This ingredient primarily functions as a nonionic emulsifier and surfactant, helping oil and water phases blend and improving spread in creams, lotions, and cleansing systems.
What does Ceteth-3 do in a cosmetic formula?
This ingredient primarily functions as a nonionic emulsifier and surfactant, helping oil and water phases blend and improving spread in creams, lotions, and cleansing systems.
Is Ceteth-3 clean?
This ingredient sits in the PEG and ethoxylated category, so many clean frameworks flag it for possible ethylene oxide and 1,4-dioxane residuals unless tightly purified and tested. It is generally a low-sensitization nonionic emulsifier, but its processing route creates the main clean-standard friction.
Is Ceteth-3 sustainable?
This material is typically made from a fatty alcohol combined with ethylene oxide, with the fatty portion often sourced from palm, coconut, or petrochemical feedstocks. Alkyl ethoxylates can biodegrade, but the petrochemical processing step and possible palm supply-chain issues weaken its sustainability profile.
Is Ceteth-3 COSMOS-approved?
It is not permitted in COSMOS-natural or COSMOS-organic products because ethoxylation is not an allowed green-chemistry transformation under the standard. Its fit with Green Chemistry is limited by petrochemical input, residual-control needs, and a less preferred manufacturing route, despite useful performance at low levels.
How does Ceteth-3 work chemically?
The molecule is a nonionic ether with a long saturated C16 alkyl tail and an average of three oxyethylene units, giving low-to-moderate HLB and oil-leaning emulsification behavior. It is commonly used in the low single-digit percent range, is broadly stable across typical cosmetic pH, and is often paired with higher-HLB emulsifiers to tune emulsion structure.
Last updated 2026-08-17