Retinol

About this Retinol listing

This page sells Retinol as a liquid active concentrate by the milliliter. Retinol itself, CAS 68-26-8, is the alcohol form of vitamin A and is naturally oil-soluble. Our product record, however, lists this liquid as water-compatible, which means the retinol is carried in a system designed to blend with water-based products. The carrier, the retinol content and the full INCI are printed on the CoA for each lot. Read it before your first batch, because it decides which phase you add the material to and how you calculate the level.

What retinol brings

Retinol is one of the most recognized ingredients in skin care. Shoppers look for it in night creams and serums for smoother texture, finer-looking lines and a more even-looking tone. For a brand, it offers a clear, high-demand story. For a lab, it demands care: it is sensitive to light, air, heat and metal traces, and its performance in a finished product depends on good process and packaging.

Applications

Typical products are night creams, serums, eye creams with gentle levels, hand creams and body lotions. A carrier-based liquid is handy for gel creams and serums where an oil phase is small. Many lines balance retinol with comforting ingredients such as Ceramide-3 in liposomes and panthenol, or offer a plant-based alternative like Bakuchiol in the same range. More forms of vitamin A are available in our cosmetic actives catalog.

How to use it

Check the CoA first. If it confirms a water-compatible carrier, add the concentrate to a cooled gel or emulsion below 40 °C with gentle mixing. If the CoA describes an oil carrier, premix it with a little ester and add it to the cooled emulsion instead. Add an antioxidant and a chelator to the formula. Calculate the level from the retinol content; the EU limits retinol equivalents to 0.3 percent in face products and 0.05 percent in body products.

Protecting the active

Dim the lights, minimize air incorporation, keep mixing short and fill the same day. Airless pumps and aluminum tubes are the best containers. Store bulk and finished goods cool. Track color and odor during stability tests and keep a retained sample of every batch.

Compatibility

Retinol combines well with humectants, ceramides, niacinamide, panthenol and squalane. Avoid strong acids, benzoyl peroxide and oxidizers in the same product, and keep copper peptides separate. Chelators such as disodium EDTA or sodium phytate help limit metal-driven degradation. If you plan a product line with several retinol strengths, keep the base identical and change only the level of the concentrate, which simplifies stability work and regulatory files.

Characteristics

Form: liquid active concentrate. Solubility per our record: water-compatible, confirm the carrier on the CoA. Retinol CAS: 68-26-8. Retinol content and full INCI: on the CoA. Addition point: cool-down.

Original recipe: retinol gel cream, 100 g

Phase A: distilled water 81.10 g, glycerin 4.00 g, sodium phytate 0.10 g, sodium polyacrylate 0.80 g; stir until a smooth gel forms. Phase B: squalane 5.00 g, caprylic/capric triglyceride 3.00 g, tocopherol 0.50 g; premix and stir into A. Phase C below 40 °C, under dim light: Retinol concentrate at the level calculated from the CoA, here 2.00 g, panthenol 1.00 g, niacinamide 1.50 g in a little water, preservative 1.00 g. Mix gently and fill into airless pumps.

Record the lot number in your batch log so every production run can be traced back to its certificate of analysis. Retain a small sample of each lot for at least the shelf life of the finished product, since it makes later quality questions much easier to answer.

Storage

Keep the bottle tightly closed in a cool, dark place, ideally refrigerated, and limit air contact. Ships from Florida in milliliter packs.