ORBITAN STEARATE ●
TL;DR. This ingredient is a nonionic emulsifier and consistency builder, mainly helping oil and water phases form stable creams and lotions. It also adds body and can support dispersion of oily materials.
What does ORBITAN STEARATE do in a cosmetic formula?
This ingredient is a nonionic emulsifier and consistency builder, mainly helping oil and water phases form stable creams and lotions. It also adds body and can support dispersion of oily materials.
Is ORBITAN STEARATE clean?
It is generally well tolerated, low in sensitization concern, and not a common clean-standard restricted-list issue. Clean-beauty scrutiny is usually about feedstock origin, since the fatty acid portion can come from plant, animal, or mixed sources unless specified.
Is ORBITAN STEARATE sustainable?
It is typically made from sugar-derived polyols and long-chain fatty acids, often from vegetable oils, and is expected to biodegrade well. The main sustainability variable is fatty acid traceability, especially when palm-derived inputs are part of the supply chain.
Is ORBITAN STEARATE COSMOS-approved?
It is generally permitted under COSMOS-natural and COSMOS-organic when made from allowed natural-origin feedstocks and compliant processing. From a Green Chemistry lens, it aligns well on biodegradability and renewable inputs, with feedstock traceability and esterification processing as the main caveats.
How does ORBITAN STEARATE work chemically?
The molecule is a nonionic ester built from a dehydrated sugar alcohol backbone and a C18 fatty acid, giving it low-HLB behavior suited to water-in-oil systems and co-emulsification in oil-in-water creams. Typical use is often around 0.5% to 5%, with best performance when heated into the oil phase and paired with higher-HLB emulsifiers for balanced emulsion stability.
Last updated 2026-05-16