Compounds · Sesquiterpenes · Terpenoid pathway
Bicyclogermacrene
Light wood, slightly green, with a herbal note. Very hard to pick out on its own.
- CAS
- 24703-35-3
- Formula
- C15H24
- Molar mass
- 204.36
- Odour threshold
- —
- Boiling point
- ≈ 272 °C estimated
Where it comes from
Biosynthetic pathway: Terpenoid pathway — plants build them from identical five-carbon blocks.
Why it sits where it does
A ring isomer of germacrene D, and just as unstable to heat. Part of it is transformed during distillation.
Where else you meet it
Widespread in leaf oils, usually at under a few per cent. It is one of the compounds most often misidentified on a chromatogram.
About the boiling-point figure
Boiling points of heavy molecules are often published at reduced pressure without the pressure being stated, because at atmospheric pressure many of them decompose before they boil. The value here is an estimate converted to atmospheric pressure, used to place the compound on the volatility axis, not a measurement. Why this detail matters