PEG-180M ●
TL;DR. This ingredient is used mainly as a binder, viscosity builder, and film-forming polymer in aqueous personal care formulas. It helps gels, toothpastes, and emulsions feel thicker and more cohesive.
What does PEG-180M do in a cosmetic formula?
This ingredient is used mainly as a binder, viscosity builder, and film-forming polymer in aqueous personal care formulas. It helps gels, toothpastes, and emulsions feel thicker and more cohesive.
Is PEG-180M clean?
From a clean-beauty perspective, this material is often flagged because it is synthetically ethoxylated and can carry trace manufacturing residues such as ethylene oxide or 1,4-dioxane if purification is not well controlled. It is generally low-irritation due to its very large molecular size, but many restricted-list programs treat the broader class with caution.
Is PEG-180M sustainable?
This material is typically petroleum-derived and highly water-soluble. Its very high molecular weight can make biodegradation slower than smaller, readily biodegradable cosmetic ingredients, so it has weaker environmental alignment.
Is PEG-180M COSMOS-approved?
It is not aligned with COSMOS-natural or COSMOS-organic standards because ethoxylated synthetic polymers are generally not permitted. From a Green Chemistry lens, it has drawbacks in fossil feedstock reliance, ethoxylation chemistry, and limited biodegradability.
How does PEG-180M work chemically?
The molecule is an ultra-high-molecular-weight, nonionic polyether built from repeating oxyethylene units, which gives strong water binding, slip, and viscosity enhancement at low concentrations. It is usually used at fractional-percent levels to about 1%, is stable across typical cosmetic pH ranges, and is commonly paired with salts, gums, or surfactants to fine-tune texture.
Last updated 2026-05-13