Ultramarine Blue Pigment, Cosmetic Grade – KT-40001

KT-40001 is a cosmetic grade Ultramarine Blue — a synthetic inorganic pigment that provides a clean, bright violet-blue body color with excellent opacity and low heavy metal content suitable for use across personal care and color cosmetic formulations. Unlike organic blue dyes, Ultramarine Blue is chemically inert, non-migrating, and inherently lightfast — properties that make it a reliable choice for pressed powders, eye shadows, lip products, and soap where color stability over shelf life is a baseline requirement. All Kolortek cosmetic oxide grades are filtered to remove regulated impurities before supply.

Product Positioning

KT-40001 belongs to Kolortek's Cosmetic Matte Oxides & Inorganic Pigments range — the flat-color foundation tier of the cosmetic pigment portfolio, alongside iron oxides (yellow, red, black, brown), titanium dioxide, chromium green oxide, ultramarines, and carbon black. Where Kolortek's pearlescent and effect pigment series (KT-100, KT-200, KT-300, multicolor mica) provide shimmer, interference, and sparkle, the matte oxide range provides the opaque body color that underlies most cosmetic formulations. Ultramarine Blue specifically fills the role of the blue-violet matte colorant — a hue range not covered by iron oxides alone.

Technical Specifications

Key Technical Characteristics

Synthetic inorganic — stability advantages over organic blue colorants: Ultramarine Blue is manufactured by calcining a mixture of aluminosilicates and sulfur compounds — the resulting pigment is chemically inert under normal cosmetic conditions. Unlike organic blue dyes and lakes, it does not degrade under UV exposure, does not bleed into adjacent formulation layers, and does not react with most cosmetic ingredients. The color is inherently stable over the product shelf life without the lightfastness limitations of synthetic organic blue chromophores.

Violet-blue hue — formulation use in shade development: Ultramarine Blue has a characteristic reddish, violet-biased blue tone that distinguishes it from phthalocyanine blues (which are greener). In cosmetic color development, it is used to build cool blue and blue-violet shades in eye shadows, eyeliners, and blue-toned face powders. Combined with iron oxide black, it produces deep navy tones; combined with TiO₂, it produces light blue pastel ranges; combined with iron oxide red or violet pigments, it produces purple and plum shades.

Acid sensitivity — the critical formulation constraint: Ultramarine Blue decomposes in acidic conditions at approximately pH 3 and below, releasing hydrogen sulfide gas and losing its blue color. For most cosmetic applications — pressed powder, wax-based lipstick, eye shadow, and neutral-pH emulsions — this is not a practical concern. For formulations with low pH (vitamin C serums, AHA-containing products, strongly acidic lip products), acid stability testing is required before specifying. If acid stability is a hard requirement, Kolortek's other blue options should be evaluated.

High tinting strength and dispersion behavior: Ultramarine Blue has moderate-to-high tinting strength. In pressed powder and loose powder formulations, typical use levels run 1–10% depending on shade depth. Ultramarine tends to agglomerate during storage and benefits from pre-dispersion before incorporation into the base — milling or grinding with a small amount of the oil or binder phase improves color development and reduces speck formation in the finished product.

Application Range

Formulation Notes

Pre-dispersion recommended: Ultramarine Blue tends to agglomerate as a dry powder. For pressed powder and loose powder applications, pre-blending with a small amount of isopropyl myristate, caprylic/capric triglyceride, or other cosmetic ester before mixing into the base improves color development, reduces speck formation, and gives more consistent shade-to-shade reproducibility across batches.

Acid stability testing is essential for aqueous and emulsion systems: Before specifying KT-40001 in a water-based formulation, confirm the formulation pH is consistently above approximately pH 4 under all production and storage conditions. Formulations at or below pH 3 will degrade the pigment. Buffer system selection and pH monitoring during batch production should be part of the quality protocol for any ultramarine-containing aqueous cosmetic.

Blending for shade development: Ultramarine Blue blends predictably with other cosmetic oxides. Key blend directions: Ultramarine + Iron Oxide Black → deep navy / near-black blue; Ultramarine + TiO₂ → pastel blue range; Ultramarine + Iron Oxide Red → violet and purple; Ultramarine + Iron Oxide Red + TiO₂ → mauve and lavender. Kolortek supplies the full cosmetic oxide range including iron oxides (yellow, red, black, brown), TiO₂, and chromium oxide — allowing formulators to source all matte body colorants from a single supplier with consistent batch documentation.

Kolortek has supplied cosmetic grade inorganic pigments including ultramarines for over 20 years, with Certificate of Analysis documentation covering heavy metal impurity levels per production lot — the standard deliverable for cosmetic ingredient supplier qualification files. TDS, SDS, and INCI documentation are available on request.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Is KT-40001 Ultramarine Blue approved for use in eye-area cosmetics?
A: Yes. CI 77007 (Ultramarines) is approved for use in eye-area cosmetics under FDA regulations and is listed in Annex IV of the EU Cosmetics Regulation for eye-area use. Formulators should verify the current approved use categories for their specific product type and target market before production specification. Contact Kolortek for market-specific regulatory documentation.

Q: Why does my Ultramarine Blue turn green or lose color in some formulations?
A: Color change or loss in Ultramarine Blue is almost always caused by acid exposure. The pigment decomposes in acidic conditions below approximately pH 3, initially turning greenish before losing color entirely. Check the pH of the complete formulation — including any ingredients that are acidic (citric acid, lactic acid, vitamin C, AHA actives). If the formulation pH is confirmed above pH 4 and color loss is still occurring, contact Kolortek's technical team to evaluate whether a specific ingredient interaction is involved.

Q: What is the difference between Ultramarine Blue and Ultramarine Violet?
A: Both are CI 77007 (Ultramarines) with the same base chemistry. Ultramarine Blue has a reddish-blue tone. Ultramarine Violet has a more pronounced red-violet tone, produced by a variation in the manufacturing process that shifts the sulfur configuration. In formulation terms, Ultramarine Violet produces purpler tones in blends and is used where a redder blue is required. Kolortek supplies both — contact us to confirm availability and shade comparison.

Q: Can Ultramarine Blue be used in cold process soap?
A: Yes — Ultramarine Blue is one of the most widely used colorants in cold process soap. Cold process soap has a high pH (typically 9–10), and Ultramarine Blue is stable in alkaline conditions. It is insoluble in the saponified oils and distributes as a pigment throughout the soap matrix. Typical usage rates in cold process soap run 1–3% of total batch weight, though this varies with desired shade depth.

Request Samples or Technical Documentation

Whether you are qualifying a new cosmetic oxide supplier or developing a blue eye shadow, soap colorant, or lip product blend, contact Kolortek to request a sample of KT-40001 Ultramarine Blue, Certificate of Analysis, TDS, SDS, or INCI documentation for your supplier qualification file.