Lauryl/Myristyl Polyricinoleate

TL;DR. This ingredient is a lipophilic emollient and pigment-dispersing agent. It improves spread, softens payoff, and helps wet powders in color cosmetics, balms, and anhydrous formulas.

What does Lauryl/Myristyl Polyricinoleate do in a cosmetic formula?

This ingredient is a lipophilic emollient and pigment-dispersing agent. It improves spread, softens payoff, and helps wet powders in color cosmetics, balms, and anhydrous formulas.

Is Lauryl/Myristyl Polyricinoleate clean?

It is generally well-tolerated and is not a common clean-standard restricted-list ingredient. The main review points are supplier documentation, residual processing aids, and small amounts of unreacted fatty materials from manufacture.

Is Lauryl/Myristyl Polyricinoleate sustainable?

This material is commonly based on renewable vegetable feedstocks, often involving castor-derived chemistry plus plant fatty alcohol streams. It is expected to be biodegradable due to its ester structure, with palm-linked alcohol sourcing and agricultural traceability as the main caveats.

Is Lauryl/Myristyl Polyricinoleate COSMOS-approved?

It can be permitted under COSMOS-natural when made from allowed renewable inputs through accepted esterification chemistry, while COSMOS-organic eligibility depends on certified feedstock accounting. It fits Green Chemistry reasonably well because it is non-ethoxylated, uses renewable carbon, and contains ester bonds that support biodegradation.

How does Lauryl/Myristyl Polyricinoleate work chemically?

The molecule is a highly lipophilic oligomeric ester with multiple ester linkages and long alkyl chains, giving it strong powder-wetting and cushion without water solubility. It is stable in anhydrous systems and across typical cosmetic pH ranges when emulsified, but strong acid or alkali conditions can gradually hydrolyze the ester bonds.

Last updated 2026-05-13