Stearic acid is found in various animal and plant fats, and is one of the many useful types of saturated fatty acids that occurs naturally in various plants and animal derivatives. When used in cosmetic products, stearic acid primarily fulfills the role of a thickener or hardener. Stearic acid has an eighteen carbon chain and is considered a long-chain fatty acid.
Stearic acid is mainly used in the production of detergents, soaps, and cosmetics such as shampoos and shaving cream products. It also helps objects such as bars of soap, candles, oil pastels and hard candies retain their shapes. Soaps are not made directly from stearic acid, but indirectly by saponification of triglycerides consisting of stearic acid esters, which produce a pearly effect in shampoos, soaps, and other cosmetic products. Unlike many fatty acids, stearic acids can have either animal or vegetable origins.
With the growing trend of consumers for products to be responsibly sourced, naturally based, organic and/or vegan, producers of personal care products, such as soap and laundry detergent are exploring the ability to utilize vegetable based products in their applications.
Twin Rivers Technologies currently offers two different stearic acids that are vegetable based. Vegetable based stearic acid is produced from plant-based oils. It is used in a variety of cosmetics and personal care products, in fragrances, and as a surfactant or emulsifier. TRV1 is distilled and fully hydrogenated and in liquid form is clear, colorless to pale yellow. TRV1655 is a triple pressed vegetable stearic acid that TRT currently offers. To learn the difference between our current vegetable stearic acids, please visit our website
To learn more about Twin Rivers Technologies' stearic fatty acids and other products, please visit our website or contact our commercial team to discuss your naturally based specialty chemical needs