Fermented actives · Humectant
One INCI name, one CAS number — and three orders of magnitude of molecular weight underneath it. We quote the band, the method and the number, because those decide what your formulation actually does.
Also known as sodium hyaluronate · hyaluronic acid sodium salt · sodium hyaluronan · hyaluronate sodium · HA-Na · INCI: Sodium Hyaluronate
Overview
Sodium hyaluronate is the sodium salt of hyaluronic acid, a linear glycosaminoglycan built from repeating disaccharide units of D-glucuronic acid and N-acetyl-D-glucosamine. Commercial material is produced by fermentation — typically Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus — then purified, precipitated and dried.
The commercial question is rarely “is it sodium hyaluronate”. Every lot of every supplier has the same CAS number and the same INCI name. The question is which molecular weight, and how that number was measured.
This is not a detail. Commercial sodium hyaluronate spans roughly 3 kDa to 3,000 kDa — a factor of a thousand. A 5 kDa grade and a 2 MDa grade share a name, a CAS number and a specification sheet template, and behave nothing alike in a formula: one penetrates and leaves no film, the other sits on the surface and holds water. Choose the wrong band and nothing in the COA will tell you.
Which is why our specification names the band, and the COA states both the figure and the method used to obtain it. Viscosity-average and weight-average molecular weight are not the same number, and two suppliers can both honestly claim “1.5 MDa” while shipping materials that differ by a quarter.
Identity
The identifiers your specification sheet, customs paperwork and product label all have to agree on. Where a number depends on the salt form, both are given.
HS codes are indicative only. Final classification is confirmed per shipment with your customs broker.
Manufacture
Four stages separate the fermentation broth from the lot you receive. Each one leaves a test result on the batch record — and the third one is where molecular weight is decided, or lost.
A Streptococcus strain is grown in a controlled carbohydrate medium and secretes hyaluronic acid into the broth. The capsular polymer is what gets harvested; the strain, the medium and the harvest point all influence the chain length.
Cells and protein are removed, then the polymer is precipitated and washed. This is where protein content and transparency are set — the two numbers that separate a clean cosmetic grade from a merely cheap one.
The precipitate is dried and milled to a defined particle size. Chain scission during drying or milling is the quiet way to lose a molecular weight band, which is why the released figure is measured on the finished powder, not on the broth.
Sodium hyaluronate content, glucuronic acid, molecular weight, pH, transparency, protein, loss on drying, heavy metals and microbiological limits against the written specification.
Applications
Sodium hyaluronate is a formulation ingredient, not a finished product. In practice the format picks the band before anything else does.
Usually quoted at 0.1–1% w/w depending on band. High-MW grades thicken fast — at the top of that range a high-MW material can turn a serum into a gel, so confirm the band before you fix the use level. Your own rheology and sensory data decides.
Often a blend of two bands rather than one: high MW for the surface film, low MW so the product does not feel heavy. If you are matching a benchmark product, the ratio is the formulation work — send the target feel and we will quote the bands separately.
Powder or granule form for capsules, sachets and tablets. Grade and market status must be confirmed for your destination before the first order — this is a cosmetic and food material, and the current position differs by market.
Specification
The written limits we release against, with the method used to test each one. Batch results for the lot you receive are stated on its certificate of analysis.
| Parameter | Limit | Method |
|---|---|---|
| Appearance | White to off-white powder or granules | Visual |
| Sodium hyaluronate content | ≥ 95.0% | Dry basis calculation |
| Glucuronic acid | ≥ 42.0% | Colorimetric / HPLC |
| Molecular weight | Within the band agreed at order | Viscometry or SEC-MALS |
| pH (0.1% aq.) | 6.0 – 7.5 | Potentiometric |
| Transparency | ≥ 99.0% | Spectrophotometric |
| Protein | ≤ 0.10% | Kjeldahl / Bradford |
| Loss on drying | ≤ 10.0% | Oven / Karl Fischer |
| Residue on ignition | ≤ 20.0% | Gravimetric |
| Heavy metals (as Pb) | ≤ 10 ppm | ICP-MS |
| Arsenic | ≤ 2.0 ppm | ICP-MS |
| Total plate count | ≤ 100 cfu/g | Plate count |
| Yeast & mould | ≤ 100 cfu/g | Plate count |
| S. aureus / P. aeruginosa / E. coli / Salmonella | Absent | Enrichment |
| Shelf life | 24–36 months from date of manufacture, unopened | Stability programme |
Tighter limits — for example a lower heavy-metal ceiling or a residual-solvent panel — can be quoted against your own specification wording.
Certificate
Three lines on this material are routinely misread, and all three are the ones that decide whether the lot works in your formula.
Viscosity-average molecular weight (Mv) and weight-average molecular weight (Mw) are different quantities, and the gap between them is routinely 10–30%. Two suppliers can each state “1.5 MDa” in good faith and ship materials whose distribution curves barely overlap. Ask for the method — viscometry or size-exclusion chromatography with light scattering — and for the distribution, not just a single average.
Sodium hyaluronate content is reported as a percentage, but the check that catches a diluted or degraded lot is glucuronic acid content. It is a structural measure, so it does not move when the material is blended with a cheaper polysaccharide the way a content assay might. If a COA omits glucuronic acid, the specification is thin.
Both are purification indicators, and both are invisible in a “≥95%” figure. Protein drifting up with transparency drifting down usually points at the same cause — incomplete removal before precipitation. For a cosmetic grade, this shows up as haze and off-odour in the finished product months later, not on the receiving dock.
Documentation & packaging
The paperwork travels with the goods. If your QA team needs an extra declaration, ask before the order is released — some are issued per production lot and cannot be retrofitted.
Batch number, sodium hyaluronate content, glucuronic acid, molecular weight and method, pH, transparency, protein, loss on drying, heavy metals and microbiological results — one page, one lot.
Molecular weight determination report with the method stated, plus the chromatogram where chromatography is used.
Safety data sheet for handling and transport, and the written specification the batch was released against.
Non-GMO, non-animal origin, TSE/BSE, allergen and origin statements, issued against the actual production lot — tell us which your market requires.
| Pack size | Presentation | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| 1–100 g | Sealed foil pouch | Evaluation and lab scale |
| 1 kg | Aluminium foil bag in carton | Pilot batches |
| 10–25 kg | Fibre drum, food-grade liner | Commercial |
Questions
The questions buyers actually ask about Sodium Hyaluronate. Anything not covered here, ask directly — you will get an answer from someone technical, not a template.
Related
Quotation
Send the quantity, the grade you need and the destination. You will get a written quotation with lead time, packaging options and the documentation set for this material.
