Pentylene Glycol

Pentylene Glycol is a humectant and preservative booster. It can also help reduce tackiness in formulations, and in some formulations may be sufficient as a standalone preservative.

It can be naturally and synthetically sourced, so check with your supplier.

Pentylene Glycol

Clear liquid

Evonik:

• Emulsions: 1–3% with a co-active, 5% alone
• Surfactant/aqueous products: 3–5%
• “Do not exceed 4 % for eye care and sensitive skin products”

CIR limit of 5% in leave-on and rinse-off products.

Nothing noticeable

7.5

Up to 12

Water soluble

Pentylene Glycol is a humectant that lowers water activity and boosts preservative performance. It can also help reduce tackiness.

No, but it might be worth sourcing if you are interested in experimenting with hurdle technology.

This ingredient only exists as a refined product.

Good humectant and preservative booster.

It’s not as easy to get as other glycols like Propanediol 1,3 and also tends to be more expensive.

Other humectants like butylene glycol and propanediol 1,3 could work, but they do not lower water activity as much as pentylene glycol.

Pentylene Glycol can be hot or cold processed. Evonik recommends including it before emulsification, but notes it can also be added during the cool down phase.

Stored somewhere cool, dark, and dry, Pentylene Glycol should last at least 2 years.

Pentylene Glycol can be made from natural or synthetic source ingredients; naturally sourced versions are typically more expensive.

Skin Chakra reports concentrations above 5% may be sufficient to make a formulation self preserving.

30mL (1fl oz)

 Buy it from an online DIY ingredient supplier.

• Formulator Sample Shop (USA)
• Making Cosmetics (USA)
• Les Âmes Fleurs (Canada)
• Dragonspice (Germany)