Peg-8 ●
TL;DR. It acts mainly as a water-soluble humectant and solvent, helping dissolve actives or fragrance components and reducing tack in water-based formulas. It can also support texture and slip in creams, gels, and cleansers.
What does Peg-8 do in a cosmetic formula?
It acts mainly as a water-soluble humectant and solvent, helping dissolve actives or fragrance components and reducing tack in water-based formulas. It can also support texture and slip in creams, gels, and cleansers.
Is Peg-8 clean?
From a clean-beauty perspective, this ingredient carries friction because it is ethoxylated and may require controls for residual 1,4-dioxane and unreacted ethylene oxide. It is generally low-irritation at cosmetic use levels, but many stricter retailer lists flag or restrict this class unless impurity testing is documented.
Is Peg-8 sustainable?
It is typically petroleum-derived, although bio-based routes are technically possible, and it is water-soluble rather than bioaccumulative. Lower molecular weight materials in this class are generally biodegradable, but production depends on energy-intensive ethoxylation and careful byproduct management.
Is Peg-8 COSMOS-approved?
It is not permitted in COSMOS-natural or COSMOS-organic formulas because the standard does not allow this type of ethoxylated material. Its Green Chemistry fit is weak because common production uses petrochemical feedstocks and reactive ethoxylation, even though the final material is water-soluble and typically biodegradable.
How does Peg-8 work chemically?
The molecule is a short-chain, water-soluble polyether with about 8 oxyethylene repeat units and an average molar mass near 400 Da. It is nonionic, stable across typical cosmetic pH ranges, and often used around 1-10% as a solvent or humectant, with higher levels possible when it serves as a carrier.
Last updated 2026-05-13