Chemical Properties
Bois de Rose oil is steam distilled, occasionally water distilled, from the chipped wood of A. rosaeodora and possibly
from other species of the genus Burseraceae, belonging to the Laurel family. The Brazilian and cayenne oils exhibit a sweet, slightly
woody, characteristic odor, whereas the Peruvian quality has a harsher, more camphoraceous top note.
Chemical Properties
Evergreen, medium-sized tree growing wild in the forests of the Amazon basin (Brazil, Peru) and in French Guinea.
Brazilian and Peruvian bois-de-rose oils are distilled from the same botanical variety (A. rosaeodora var. amazonica Ducke). The
oils exhibit only slightly different physical characteristics, but they have different odors particular to the growing site of the trees.
Cayenne bois-de-rose oil, distilled from the variety A. rosaeodora Ducke, is considered the best quality of bios-de-rose essential oils.
Cayenne bois-de-rose oil is produced in large scale as compared to the Brazilian and Peruvian counterparts. Plant part used is the
wood. Bois de rose has a characteristic, sweet, somewhat woody, floral odor.
Chemical Properties
Rosewood oil, Brazilian (Bois de rose oil) is obtained by steam distillation of
wood from Aniba rosaeodora A. Ducke var. amazonica A. Ducke and/or Aniba
parviflora Meissner Mez. (Lauraceae). It is an almost colorless to pale yellow liquid
with a characteristic, sweet odor, reminiscent of linalool, its main constituent.
d2020 0.870–0.887; n20D 1.4620–1.4690; α20D ?2 °50′ to +4 °; solubility: 1 vol in 9 vol
of 60% ethanol at 20 ℃; ester value (after acetylation): 247–280, corresponding
to an alcohol content of 82–96% (calculated as linalool); linalool content by GC: 70–90%.
Until the 1970s, Brazilian rosewood oil was a desirable raw material for the production
of linalool, but excessive exploitation and the development of large-scale
processes for fully synthetic linalool (for production of vitamin A) have led to a
sharp decline in production. Currently, the harvesting of rosewood oil is restricted
by the Brazilian government due to the risk of extinction.Thus, the oil is
only produced in very small quantities, if ever.
Physical properties
The oil, obtained by steam distillation of the chopped wood, is colorless to pale yellow.
Definition
Extractives and their physically modified derivatives. Aniba rosaeodora, Lauraceae.
