Compounds · Esters · Phenylpropanoid pathway
Benzyl acetate
Also known as Acetic acid benzyl ester — an analysis may use any of these names
Jasmine, sweet, slightly waxy. Clean and pleasant — which is exactly why real jasmine needs indole so as not to be bland.
- CAS
- 140-11-4
- Formula
- C9H10O2
- Molar mass
- 150.17
- Odour threshold
- 200 ppbin water
- Boiling point
- ≈ 213 °C at atmospheric pressure
For this compound the two axes sit close together. Volatility tells you whether it leaves a surface early or late; the threshold tells you how much of it the nose needs before it notices.
Where it comes from
Biosynthetic pathway: Phenylpropanoid pathway — plants build them around a six-carbon aromatic ring.
About the threshold figure
High. That is one reason it is used so much in aromatics: it takes large amounts, so it is easy to control.
Published thresholds differ by several orders of magnitude, because of differences in measuring method, sample purity and panel. The figure here is an order of magnitude for relative comparison, not a measurement. We give it only for compounds where the literature broadly agrees — 52 of the 106 compounds in the library. The rest are left blank rather than guessed.
Why it sits where it does
An aromatic ester, moderately polar, boiling at around 213 degrees, so it sits clearly in the second half of the band.
Where else you meet it
Jasmine, ylang-ylang, and a great many white-flower perfume formulas.