A denaturant is a substance added to another material, such as alcohol to change its natural qualities and make it unpleasant, toxic, or unfit for human consumption without affecting its usefulness for other purposes.
Denatured Alcohol is used in many personal care product types including makeup, lotions, fragrance, shaving, oral care, skin care, and hair care products where it functions as an antifoaming agent, cosmetic astringent, solvent, and viscosity decreasing agent.
Denaturing agents (also referred to as denaturants) are widely used in industries for:
– Making alcohol unfit for drinking while allowing its use as a solvent or fuel
– Preventing accidental ingestion in household and health products such as hand sanitizers and cleaners
– Making laboratory or industrial food-grade alcohol inedible to humans
Common denaturants include toxic or bitter substances such as methanol, denatonium benzoate (Bitrex), pyridine, isopropyl alcohol, methyl ethyl ketone, tert-butyl alcohol, and others.