The Beauty & Personal Care Brand Builder Series

Ingredient Deep Dive

C13-14 Isoparaffin

The Beauty & Personal Care Brand Builder Series

Ingredient Deep Dive

C13-14 Isoparaffin

The Lightweight Synthetic Emollient

C13-14 Isoparaffin is a light, colorless synthetic emollient and carrier, prized for a clean, non-greasy feel and its role in liquid polymer thickeners.

It softens and lubricates, gives a silky glide, and commonly serves as the oil-phase carrier for “instant” liquid-polymer emulsifier/thickener systems.

Quick Insights

Ingredient Rating:

GOOD

Type of Ingredient:

Emollient

Intended Function:

A light synthetic emollient and the carrier oil for many liquid-polymer thickener/emulsifier systems.

Common Applications:

Used across moisturizers, serums and lotions and treatment formulas.

Target Audience:

Formulators wanting a clean-feel emollient or using cold-process liquid-polymer thickeners.

Also Known As:

C13-14 Isoparaffin

Benefits of C13-14 Isoparaffin

A light synthetic emollient and carrier for smooth textures and liquid-polymer systems.

Light Emollient: Softens and lubricates with a clean, non-greasy feel.
Silky Glide: Improves spreadability and playtime.
Polymer Carrier: The classic oil-phase carrier for cold-process liquid thickeners.
Stable: Colorless, odorless and oxidation-resistant.
Versatile: Suits lotions, gels, sunscreens and more.

How It Works

As a branched (iso) paraffin, C13-14 Isoparaffin is a low-viscosity, non-polar oil that spreads lightly and lubricates the skin; it is also the medium in which many acrylate thickening polymers are supplied, releasing them to thicken/emulsify when they meet water.

Formulating with C13-14 Isoparaffin

C13-14 Isoparaffin is used in the oil phase as an emollient, or comes pre-blended in liquid polymer emulsifiers that are simply stirred into the water phase to thicken. Observe good manufacturing and preservation practice.

Safety Analysis

C13-14 Isoparaffin is well tolerated with a strong safety and stability record. As always, substantiate the finished product’s safety (e.g. patch / HRIPT testing) in line with MoCRA requirements.

References

https://incidecoder.com/ingredients/c13-14-isoparaffin

https://cosmeticanalysis.com/cosmetic-ingredients/c13-14-isoparaffin

https://cosmeticsinfo.org/ingredient/c13-14-isoparaffin/

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