Is Trisodium Phosphate safe in cosmetics?
Trisodium Phosphate has a safety rating of "MODERATE" in our database. EU status: permitted. US status: permitted.
Trisodium Phosphate
Also known as: Caswell No. 898, EINECS 231-509-8, Emulsiphos 440/660, EPA Pesticide Chemical Code 076406, NSC 215202 (+13 more)
INCI: TRISODIUM PHOSPHATE
Trisodium Phosphate (CAS 7601-54-9) is a cosmetic cosmetic ingredient functioning as Buffering agent; chelating agent; pH adjuster. NOAEL 145.7 mg/kg bw/day (cross-referenced against ToxValDB ECHA IUCLID); EU Regulation 1223/2009 status: permitted; GHS signal word DANGER. Industrial safety data is also available in the chemical safety database. Same-CAS public records also appear in industrial chemical safety and pharmaceutical data.
View industrial chemical safety profile for CAS 7601-54-9 →
Auto-generated CPSR Part A draft with source citations
Cross-Vertical Regulatory Divergence
Trisodium Phosphate is classified GHS Danger (H315, H319, H335, H314, 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; chelating agent; pH adjuster
Safety Rating
MODERATE
Chemistry & Identifiers
IUPAC Name
trisodium;phosphate
InChIKey
RYFMWSXOAZQYPI-UHFFFAOYSA-K
Regulatory Status
EU EU Status
permitted
US US Status
permitted
US Notes
GRAS for food use; permitted in cosmetics as pH adjuster
For full compliance data across multiple jurisdictions, use the Substance Compliance tool.
Safety Data
Margin of Safety, dermal absorption, and sensitization profile summaries for Trisodium Phosphate.
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.
Signal Word
DANGER
Pictograms
Corr
Hazard Statements
Causes severe skin burns and eye damage
Short-term Exposure Effects
The substance is corrosive to the eyes, skin and respiratory tract. Corrosive on ingestion.
Routes of Exposure
Serious local effects by all routes of exposure.
Pre-Calculated Safety Assessment
Pre-calculated NOAEL → SED → MoS audit trail for Trisodium Phosphate across SCCS product categories, with measured dermal absorption where available.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LD50 | >300 mg/kg | Rabbit | dermal | acute | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | >7940 mg/kg | Rabbit | dermal | acute | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | >7940 mg/kg | Rabbit | dermal | acute | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | >7940 mg/kg | Rat | dermal | acute | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | >7940 mg/kg | Rat | dermal | acute | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | >300 mg/kg | Rabbit | dermal | acute | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | =4100 mg/kg | Rat | oral | - | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | =4150 mg/kg | Rat | oral | - | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | =4150 mg/kg | Rat | 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.
ph_stability
{"stable_ph_min": "11.0", "stable_ph_max": "13.0", "ph_dependent_function": "Strong alkalizer", "formulation_note": "Rarely used in cosmetics", "source": "Formulation literature"}
PubChem Annotations
Safety and regulatory annotations from PubChem (NCBI) aggregated sources.
Safety (2)
ICSC Safety Card
1178
Source: ILO-WHO International Chemical Safety Cards (ICSCs)
Skin Eye Respiratory Irritation
Acute exposures to trisodium phosphate may cause irritation of the respiratory system with subsequent coughing and pain.
Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Regulatory (2)
JECFA Evaluation
TRIBASIC SODIUM PHOSPHATE | 1982 | Group MTDI for phosphorus from all sources, expressed as P | TRS 683-JECFA 26/25 | FAS 17-JECFA 26/151
Source: Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA)
EU Food Improvement
Food additives
Source: EU Food Improvement Agents
Function Categories & List Membership
Cosmetic/Chemical Function Categories
Anti-caking agent
Biocide
Chelating agent
Cleaning agent
Drier
Emulsifier
Flavouring and nutrient
Humectant
Lubricating agent
Pigment
Regulatory List Membership (1)
FDA Substances Added to Food (EAFUS)
Expert Verdict
Expert safety assessment and concern-level summary for Trisodium Phosphate.
Regulatory Flags
fda_food_additive
Known Synonyms
Caswell No. 898
EINECS 231-509-8
Emulsiphos 440/660
EPA Pesticide Chemical Code 076406
NSC 215202
Nutrifos STP
Sodium orthophosphate, tertiary
Sodium orthophosphate, tribasic
Sodium phosphate, anhydrous
UNII-SX01TZO3QZ
Na3PO4
Trinatriumphosphat
sodium orthophosphate
sodium phosphate
sodium phosphate, tribasic
tertiaeres Natriumphosphat(V)
tertiary sodium phosphate
tribasic sodium orthophosphate
Chemical Function
Chelating agent
pH regulating agent
Pigment
Cleaning agent
Lubricating agent
Flavouring and nutrient
Regulatory Lists
fracking; water
Europe; plastic_additive
active_ingredient; Europe; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
active_ingredient; Pesticides
Australian Status
AICIS status: listed
Cross-Vertical Safety Context
Same-CAS public records found in pharmaceutical data.
SOURCE
ChEMBL / DrugCentral / FAERS
DB_PHARMA CAS match
Pharmaceutical Data
Same-CAS rows from the pharmaceutical spoke database.
Compound
SODIUM PHOSPHATE, TRIBASIC
ChEMBL ID
CHEMBL363100
Max Phase
-1
Adverse Event Associations
3
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Trisodium Phosphate allowed in the EU?
Trisodium Phosphate EU regulatory status: permitted. This is based on EU Regulation 1223/2009 and its amendments.
What does Trisodium Phosphate do in cosmetics?
Trisodium Phosphate functions as: Buffering agent; chelating agent; pH adjuster. It is classified as a cosmetic ingredient in our database. CAS number: 7601-54-9.
Is Trisodium Phosphate classified as hazardous under GHS?
Trisodium Phosphate carries a GHS signal word of "DANGER". Hazard statements: Causes severe skin burns and eye damage. This classification is based on the ILO/WHO International Chemical Safety Card and ECHA C&L inventory data. Note: GHS classification applies to the pure substance — at cosmetic use concentrations, hazard thresholds may not be met.
Is Trisodium Phosphate used outside cosmetics?
Trisodium Phosphate also appears in industrial chemical safety and pharmaceutical data. The cross-vertical cards on this page render same-CAS public rows from the matched databases.
Does Trisodium Phosphate have different safety status in cosmetics vs industrial chemicals?
Trisodium Phosphate is classified GHS Danger (H315, H319, H335, H314, H318) in the chemicals database but is allowed in EU cosmetics.
Compliance Tools
Check Trisodium Phosphate compliance across multiple jurisdictions:
Ingredient Decoder
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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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