SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE ●
TL;DR. This ingredient is a primary anionic cleansing surfactant and foaming agent in shampoos, body washes, hand soaps, and facial cleansers. It lowers surface tension, helps lift oil and soil from skin or hair, and builds a dense, stable lather.
What does SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE do in a cosmetic formula?
This ingredient is a primary anionic cleansing surfactant and foaming agent in shampoos, body washes, hand soaps, and facial cleansers. It lowers surface tension, helps lift oil and soil from skin or hair, and builds a dense, stable lather.
Is SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE clean?
It has clean-standard friction because ethoxylation can leave trace 1,4-dioxane if purification is not well controlled, and several retailer standards restrict it. It can feel drying or irritating at higher active levels, though rinse-off formulas often moderate this with amphoteric co-surfactants and conditioning agents.
Is SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE sustainable?
This material is usually made from coconut or palm-kernel fatty alcohols combined with petrochemical-derived ethoxylation chemistry. It is readily biodegradable and has low bioaccumulation potential, with sustainability questions mainly tied to palm sourcing and high-volume rinse-off wastewater load.
Is SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE COSMOS-approved?
It is generally not permitted under COSMOS-natural or COSMOS-organic because its manufacture relies on ethoxylation, which does not fit the standard’s preferred processing profile. From a Green Chemistry view, it is efficient and biodegradable, but its mixed renewable and petrochemical sourcing and possible processing residues keep it from strong alignment.
How does SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE work chemically?
The molecule combines a C12 lipophilic chain, an ethoxylated spacer often averaging about 2 to 3 oxyethylene units, and a sodium-neutralized it head group, giving strong water solubility and high foam. Typical active levels are about 5 to 15% in shampoos and body washes, with lower levels in milder cleansers, and viscosity is often tuned with salt and amphoteric co-surfactants around mildly acidic to neutral pH.
Last updated 2026-05-13