Sodium L-Pyrrolidonecarboxylate ●
TL;DR. This ingredient is a humectant that binds water in the stratum corneum and helps improve skin feel in leave-on and rinse-off formulas. It is especially common in moisturizers, serums, cleansers, hair conditioners, and scalp products where water retention is the goal.
What does Sodium L-Pyrrolidonecarboxylate do in a cosmetic formula?
This ingredient is a humectant that binds water in the stratum corneum and helps improve skin feel in leave-on and rinse-off formulas. It is especially common in moisturizers, serums, cleansers, hair conditioners, and scalp products where water retention is the goal.
Is Sodium L-Pyrrolidonecarboxylate clean?
From a clean-beauty perspective, this ingredient is generally well tolerated, low in sensitization concern, and not a common restricted-list issue. Its main formulation caveat is feel, since higher levels can add tackiness in water-based products.
Is Sodium L-Pyrrolidonecarboxylate sustainable?
This material is typically made from amino-acid or sugar-derived feedstocks, often through fermentation-linked supply chains followed by neutralization. It is water soluble and readily biodegradable, with low persistence concerns in rinse-off use.
Is Sodium L-Pyrrolidonecarboxylate COSMOS-approved?
It is generally permitted in COSMOS-natural and COSMOS-organic formulations when sourced from approved natural-origin feedstocks and made with allowed processing. It fits Green Chemistry principles well because it can be renewable, biodegradable, effective at low levels, and does not require high-concern solvents in typical production.
How does Sodium L-Pyrrolidonecarboxylate work chemically?
The molecule is the sodium salt of a small cyclic amino-acid derivative, giving it strong water-binding capacity and high compatibility with aqueous systems. Typical use levels are about 0.2% to 2%, with higher levels sometimes used, and it is usually stable across mildly acidic to neutral cosmetic pH ranges.
Last updated 2026-08-19