Is Potassium Carbonate safe in cosmetics?
Potassium Carbonate has a safety rating of "GOOD" in our database. EU status: permitted. US status: permitted.
Potassium Carbonate
Also known as: Carbonate of potash, Caswell No. 685, EINECS 209-529-3, EPA Pesticide Chemical Code 073504, Kalium carbonicum (+3 more)
INCI: POTASSIUM CARBONATE
Potassium Carbonate (CAS 584-08-7) is a cosmetic cosmetic ingredient functioning as Buffering agent, pH adjuster. NOAEL 3593.5 mg/kg bw/day (cross-referenced against ToxValDB ECHA IUCLID); EU Regulation 1223/2009 status: permitted. Industrial safety data is also available in the chemical safety database. Same-CAS public records also appear in industrial chemical safety, pharmaceutical, and food safety data.
Cross-Vertical Regulatory Divergence
Potassium Carbonate is classified GHS Danger (H302, H315, H319, H335, H318) in the chemicals database but is allowed in EU cosmetics.
Source: Cosmetics: ingredients.eu status; Chemicals: ghs classifications.signal word/hazard statement code
Function
Buffering agent, pH adjuster
Editorial assessment
GOOD
Preliminary editorial note — not a computed safety verdict.
Chemistry & Identifiers
IUPAC Name
dipotassium;carbonate
InChIKey
BWHMMNNQKKPAPP-UHFFFAOYSA-L
Regulatory Status
EU EU Status
permitted
US US Status
permitted
US Notes
GRAS affirmed per 21 CFR 184.1619 with no use limitation beyond cGMP. FDA-approved inactive ingredient in drug products. CIR Expert Panel (2022) concluded safe as used, covering concentrations up to 14.4% in rinse-off hair-coloring products per VCRP data.
For full compliance data across multiple jurisdictions, use the Substance Compliance tool.
Safety Data
Margin of Safety, dermal absorption, and sensitization profile summaries for Potassium Carbonate.
Calculate MoS for your specific formulation with the MoS Calculator.
GHS Hazard Classification
Globally Harmonized System classification per ECHA C&L inventory and ILO/WHO International Chemical Safety Cards.
Short-term Exposure Effects
The substance is irritating to the eyes, skin and respiratory tract.
Routes of Exposure
The substance can be absorbed into the body by ingestion.
Pre-Calculated Safety Assessment
Pre-calculated NOAEL → SED → MoS audit trail for Potassium Carbonate across SCCS product categories, with measured dermal absorption where available.
ECHA REACH Registration
European Chemicals Agency REACH dossier and Substances of Very High Concern listing.
Registration Type
Full
Tonnage Band
100,000 - 1,000,000 tonnes
Substance Type
SUBSTANCE
SVHC Candidate
No
PubChem Annotations
Safety and regulatory annotations from PubChem (NCBI) aggregated sources.
Safety (2)
ICSC Safety Card
1588
Source: WHO/JECFA
Skin Eye Respiratory Irritation
May cause respiratory tract irritation...May cause skin irritation... May cause eye irritation. | ...Irritating to skin, mucous membrane of eyes and upper respiratory tract.
Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Regulatory (2)
JECFA Evaluation
POTASSIUM CARBONATE | 1965 | NOT LIMITED | NMRS 40/TRS 339-JECFA 9/16 | FAS 67.29/NMRS 40A,B,C-JECFA 9/159 (1965)
Source: WHO/JECFA
EU Food Improvement
Food additives
Source: EU Food Improvement Agents
Function Categories & List Membership
Cosmetic/Chemical Function Categories
Biocide
Chelating agent
Filler
Flavouring and nutrient
Leavening agent
No specific technical function
Other
Processing aids not otherwise specified
pH regulating agent
Regulatory List Membership (2)
EPA Safer Chemical Ingredients List (SCIL)
FDA Substances Added to Food (EAFUS)
Editorial summary
Preliminary editorial summary for Potassium Carbonate — not a computed safety verdict. See the sourced toxicological data above.
Regulatory Flags
ph-adjuster
alkaline
skin-irritant-clp
eye-irritant-clp
rinse-off-preferred
high-ph-risk-leave-on
no-sccs-opinion
gras-affirmed
epa_safer_alternative
fda_food_additive
jecfa_safe
NOAEL Studies Summary
View details ->Public NOAEL study rows linked to Potassium Carbonate by CAS number or substance name.
Studies
24
Lowest NOAEL
2667 mg/kg bw/day
Highest NOAEL
6137 mg/kg bw/day
ECHA
Known Synonyms
Carbonate of potash
Caswell No. 685
EINECS 209-529-3
EPA Pesticide Chemical Code 073504
Kalium carbonicum
Carbonic acid, dipotassium salt
K2CO3
Potassium carbonate, anhydrous
Chemical Function
pH regulating agent
Filler
Biocide
Processing aids not otherwise specified
No specific technical function
Regulatory Lists
inert_ingredient; Pesticides
inert_ingredient; non_food_use; Pesticides
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
agricultural; applied; fruits_and_vegetables
Australian Status
AICIS status: listed
Cross-Vertical Safety Context
Same-CAS public records found in pharmaceutical and food safety data.
SOURCE
ChEMBL / DrugCentral / FAERS
DB_PHARMA CAS match
Pharmaceutical Data
Same-CAS rows from the pharmaceutical spoke database.
Compound
POTASH, SULFURATED
ChEMBL ID
CHEMBL2105894
SOURCE
EFSA / FDA GRAS
food_additives
Food Safety Data
Same-CAS food additive or FDA GRAS records from the core public database.
Food Name
Potassium carbonate
E Number
E501
ADI
NOT LIMITED mg/kg bw
Food Category
preservative
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Potassium Carbonate allowed in the EU?
Potassium Carbonate EU regulatory status: permitted. This is based on EU Regulation 1223/2009 and its amendments.
What does Potassium Carbonate do in cosmetics?
Potassium Carbonate functions as: Buffering agent, pH adjuster. It is classified as a cosmetic ingredient in our database. CAS number: 584-08-7.
Is Potassium Carbonate used outside cosmetics?
Potassium Carbonate also appears in industrial chemical safety, pharmaceutical, and food safety data. The cross-vertical cards on this page render same-CAS public rows from the matched databases.
Does Potassium Carbonate have different safety status in cosmetics vs industrial chemicals?
Potassium Carbonate is classified GHS Danger (H302, H315, H319, H335, H318) in the chemicals database but is allowed in EU cosmetics.
Compliance Tools
Check Potassium Carbonate compliance across multiple jurisdictions:
Ingredient Decoder
Paste a full ingredient list for instant analysis
82 Allergen Checker
Check for EU declarable fragrance allergens
Substance Compliance
Check compliance across multiple jurisdictions
MoS Calculator
Calculate Margin of Safety using SCCS methodology
Heavy Metal Limits
Compare limits across jurisdictions
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