Octocrylene

Octocrylene is a synthetic chemical sunscreen ingredient. A chemical sunscreen is a type of light absorbing ingredient that protects the skin from damaging ultraviolet (UV) radiation in sunlight by absorbing the rays. This is as opposed to a physical, or mineral sunscreen, such as zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, which both absorb and reflect UV light.

Advantages of chemical sunscreens include that they are generally liquid and are usually soluble in oil. Therefore, they apply smoothly to the skin and do not leave a white cast like mineral sunscreens do.

However, there is some debate on the safety of chemical sunscreens due to the potential to create reactive oxygen species (ROS) under UV light, but more research is needed on this.

Octocrylene is supplied as a transparent yellow liquid with relatively high viscosity, and it is soluble is oil, making it easy to formulate with. It is used as a UVB light absorber because it absorbs UV light between 290 and 320 nanometers. In order to achieve broad spectrum protection using octocrylene, another sunscreen must be incorporated into the product to absorb in the UVA region of light.