CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown)

Also known as: EINECS 215-277-5, UNII-XM0M87F357, ferric ferrous oxide, ferro ferric oxide, iron(II,III) oxide

INCI: CI 77489

CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) (CAS 1317-61-9) is a cosmetic cosmetic ingredient functioning as Colorant. Synthetically prepared mixed iron oxide pigment (ferrous-ferric oxide. 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 data.

View industrial chemical safety profile for CAS 1317-61-9 →

Auto-generated CPSR Part A draft with source citations
Function
Colorant. Synthetically prepared mixed iron oxide pigment (ferrous-ferric oxide mixture, FeO·Fe2O3) producing brown hues. Also known as Iron(II,III) Oxide or magnetite-type brown iron oxide. Provides warm brown tones to cosmetic formulations. Used in foundations, face powders, eye shadows, mascaras, brow products, and skin-tone cosmetics. Part of the iron oxide family of colorants, which are among the most widely used inorganic pigments in cosmetics globally.
Safety Rating
EXCELLENT

Chemistry & Identifiers

Formula
Fe3O4
MW
231.53 g/mol
EC Number
215-277-5
PubChem CID
16211978
IUPAC Name
oxoiron;oxo(oxoferriooxy)iron
InChIKey
SZVJSHCCFOBDDC-UHFFFAOYSA-N

Regulatory Status

EU EU Status permitted
US US Status permitted
US Notes Iron oxides (including brown variants, CI 77489) are listed as color additives exempt from certification under 21 CFR 73.2250. May be safely used for coloring cosmetics generally, including cosmetics applied to the area of the eye, in amounts consistent with good manufacturing practice. Purity specifications include limits on arsenic (max 3 ppm), lead (max 10 ppm), and mercury (max 3 ppm).

For full compliance data across multiple jurisdictions, use the Substance Compliance tool.

Safety Data

Margin of Safety, dermal absorption, and sensitization profile summaries for CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown).

Calculate MoS for your specific formulation with the MoS Calculator.

EPA ToxValDB — Toxicity Values

10 toxicity values from EPA ToxValDB (aggregated from CCTE, HPV, ToxRefDB, IRIS, and other regulatory dossiers).

Endpoint Value Species Route Duration Source
ADI <=0.5 mg/kg Human oral - WHO JECFA ADI
LD50 >1578 mg/kg Mouse injection - ECHA IUCLID
LD50 =163.6 mg/kg Mouse injection - ECHA IUCLID
LD50 >438 mg/kg Mouse injection - ECHA IUCLID
LD50 >168 mg/kg Rat injection - ECHA IUCLID
LEL >50 mg/kg-day Rat oral - ECHA IUCLID
LEL =5 mg/kg-day Mouse injection short-term ECHA IUCLID
LD50 =4350 mg/kg Mouse oral - ECHA IUCLID
LD50 =6946 mg/kg Mouse oral - ECHA IUCLID
LD50 >2000 mg/kg Rat oral - ECHA IUCLID

ECHA REACH Registration

European Chemicals Agency REACH dossier and Substances of Very High Concern listing.

Registration Type
Full
Tonnage Band
10,000 - 100,000 tonnes
Substance Type
SUBSTANCE
SVHC Candidate
No

Additional Ingredient Properties

1 property record from structured ingredient metadata.

colorant
{"Common_Name": "Zinc Ferrite", "Chemical_Name": "Zinc iron oxide", "CAS_Number": "12063-19-3", "Colorant_Type": "Inorganic Pigment", "Approved_Uses": "All cosmetics", "Max_Concentration_%": "No limit", "EU_Status": "Approved", "US_FDA_Status": "Approved", "Notes": "Reddish-brown pigment"}

PubChem Annotations

Safety and regulatory annotations from PubChem (NCBI) aggregated sources.

Regulatory (1)
JECFA Evaluation
CI PIGMENT BLACK 11 | 1979 | 0-0.5 mg/kg bw | TRS 648-JECFA 23/13 | FAS 6/NMRS 54A-JECFA 18/100 (1974)
Source: Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA)

Function Categories & List Membership

Cosmetic/Chemical Function Categories
Dye Pigment
Regulatory List Membership (1)
EU Regulated in Personal Care

Expert Verdict

Expert safety assessment and concern-level summary for CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown).

Regulatory Flags

inorganic-colorant iron-oxide mineral-pigment eu-annex-iv eu-unrestricted fda-exempt-certification eye-area-permitted synthetic-pigment brown-pigment

Known Synonyms

EINECS 215-277-5 UNII-XM0M87F357 ferric ferrous oxide ferro ferric oxide iron(II,III) oxide

Chemical Function

Pigment Dye

Regulatory Lists

Europe; Personal care Canada; consumer_product; Substances in Products - Canada (4/2014) inert_ingredient; Pesticides inert_ingredient; non_food_use; Pesticides inert_ingredient; non_food_use; Pesticides general_foods pharmaceutical Europe; plastic_additive

Australian Status

AICIS status: listed

Frequently Asked Questions

Is CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) safe in cosmetics?

CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) has a safety rating of "EXCELLENT" in our database. EU status: permitted. US status: permitted.

Is CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) allowed in the EU?

CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) EU regulatory status: permitted. This is based on EU Regulation 1223/2009 and its amendments.

What does CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) do in cosmetics?

CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) functions as: Colorant. Synthetically prepared mixed iron oxide pigment (ferrous-ferric oxide mixture, FeO·Fe2O3) producing brown hues. Also known as Iron(II,III) Oxide or magnetite-type brown iron oxide. Provides warm brown tones to cosmetic formulations. Used in foundations, face powders, eye shadows, mascaras, brow products, and skin-tone cosmetics. Part of the iron oxide family of colorants, which are among the most widely used inorganic pigments in cosmetics globally.. It is classified as a cosmetic ingredient in our database. CAS number: 1317-61-9.

Is CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) used outside cosmetics?

CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) also appears in industrial chemical safety data. The cross-vertical cards on this page render same-CAS public rows from the matched databases.

Is CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) in Your Products?

Scan any product label with Piro — our free ingredient scanner. Point your camera at the ingredients list and get instant safety scores for every ingredient.

Try Piro Free →

Analyze Your Full Ingredient List

Paste any INCI list into the Decoder for instant safety analysis, or calculate the Margin of Safety for CI 77489 (Iron Oxide Brown) in your formulation.