PerfuMate › IFRA limits › Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone
How much Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone can you put in a perfume?
IFRA standard: Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone · Category 4, 51st Amendment
0.2%
of the finished perfume, at most
Under the IFRA Standards (51st Amendment, Category 4: fine fragrance on skin), Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone may make up at most 0.2% of the finished perfume. In an eau de parfum at 18%, that is at most 1.11% of your concentrate: 1.11% of every 100 g.
What the limit means at your strength
The limit is on the finished perfume, so the stronger the perfume, the less Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone its concentrate can hold. If nothing else in the formula carries it:
| Perfume strength | Most Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone in the concentrate |
|---|---|
| Cologne, 5% | 4% |
| Eau de toilette, 10% | 2% |
| 15% | 1.33% |
| Eau de parfum, 18% | 1.11% |
| 20% | 1% |
| Extrait, 25% | 0.8% |
What the standard says
It is capped because it is phototoxic: on skin it can react with sunlight, so this limit is about sun exposure rather than allergy.
Which materials contain Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone?
Sold as Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone itself, counted in full:
It also arrives inside other materials. The limit is on the total, so the calculator adds every source together. The largest carriers in PerfuMate's catalog, by their typical composition:
| Material | Typical content | Alone at 18%, at most |
|---|---|---|
| Olibanum CNC™ (Fraterworks) | 3% | 37% of the concentrate |
| Floranol 959281™ (Fraterworks) | 0.5% | no limit on its own |
| Blackcurrant (F-TEC) | 0.0009% | no limit on its own |
| Honey Supreme™ (Fraterworks) | 0.0001% | no limit on its own |
Shares are the catalog's typical values. A real batch varies with origin and season, and your supplier's analysis (GC-MS or certificate of analysis) is the real figure.
A worked example
A 100 g concentrate, bottled as an eau de parfum at 18%:
| Material | Weighed |
|---|---|
| Oranger Crystals | 1.7 g |
| Ethylene Brassylate no IFRA limit | 98.3 g |
Oranger Crystals brings 0.306% Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone to the finished perfume, against a limit of 0.2%: 1.53 times the limit. To bring it inside on its own, the calculator cuts Oranger Crystals from 1.7 g to 1.104 g. Or keep the formula and bottle it weaker: the highest strength inside every limit is 11.76%.
Or paste these lines into the calculator:
Oranger Crystals 1.7 g Ethylene Brassylate 98.3 g
Questions
Is Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone banned in perfume?
No. IFRA restricts it: at most 0.2% of a fine fragrance (Category 4).
How much Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone can I use in an eau de parfum?
At 18%, at most 1.11% of the concentrate, if nothing else in the formula carries Methyl beta-naphthyl ketone. Every other source counts toward the same total.
Does this limit apply to candles or soap?
No. This is Category 4, fine fragrance on skin. Other products sit in other IFRA categories with other limits, which these pages and the calculator do not cover.