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Perfume is a mixture of fragrant essential oils and aroma compounds , fixatives , and solvents used to give the human body, objects, and living spaces a lasting and pleasant smell. The amount and type of solvent mix with the fragrance oil dictates whether a perfume is considered a perfume extract, Eau de parfum, Eau de toilette, or Eau de Cologne .

Obtaining odorants

Before perfumes can be composed, the odorants used in various perfume compositions must first be obtained. Synthetic odorants are produced through organic synthesis and purified. Odorants from natural sources require the use of various methods to extract the aromatics from the raw materials. The results of the extraction are either essential oils, absolutes, concretes, or butters, depending on the amount of waxes in the extracted product.

• Distillation : A common technique for obtaining aromatic compounds from flowers , plants , and grasses , such as orange blossoms and roses . The raw material is placed in a distillation still with water and heated until the fragrant compounds are driven from the material and re-collected through condensation of the distilled vapour. The water used in distillation, which retains some of the fragrant compounds and oils from the raw material is called hydrosol .
• Maceration / Solvent extraction : The most commonly used and economically important technique for extracting aromatics in the modern perfume industry. Raw materials are submerged in a solvent that can dissolve the desired aromatic compounds. Maceration lasts anywhere from hours to months. Fragrant compounds for woody and fibrous plant materials are often obtained in this matter as are all aromatics from animal sources. The technique can also be used to extract odorants that are too volatile for distillation or easily denatured by heat. Commonly used solvents for maceration/solvent extraction include ethanol , hexane , and dimethyl ether .
• Expression : Raw material is squeezed or compressed and the oils are collected. Of all raw materials, only the fragrant oils from the peels of fruits in the citrus family are extracted in this manner since the oil is present in large enough quantities as to make this extraction method economically feasible.
• Enfleurage : Absorption of aroma materials into wax and then extracting the odorous oil with alcohol . Extraction by enfleurage was commonly used when distillation was not possible due to the fact that some fragrant compounds denature through high heat. This technique is not commonly used in the present day industry due to its prohibitive cost and the existence of more efficient and effective extraction methods

Composing perfumes

Perfume oils usually contain tens to hundrends of ingredients. Included in the perfume are fixatives, which bind the various fragrances together, include balsams , ambergris , and secretions from the scent glands of civets and musk deer (undiluted, these have unpleasant smells but in alcoholic solution they act as preserving agents). The mixture is normally aged for one year.

Perfumes types and properties

Perfumes oils, or the "juice" of a perfume composition, are diluted with a suitable solvent to make the perfume more usable. This is done because undiluted oils contain volatile components that would be to consentrated for people with sensitive skin or allergies. Although dilutions of the perfume oil can be done using solvents such as jojoba , fractionated coconut oil, and wax , the most common solvents for perfume oil dilution is ethanol or a mixture of the ethanol and water. The percent of perfume oil by volume in a perfume are listed as follows:

• Perfume extract: 20%-40% aromatic compounds
• Eau de parfum: 10-30% aromatic compounds
• Eau de toilette: 5-20% aromatic compounds
• Eau de cologne: 2-3% aromatic compounds

As the percentage of aromatic compounds decreases, the intensity and longevity of the scent decreases. It should be noted that different perfumeries or perfume houses assign different amount of oils to each of their perfumes. As such, although the oil concentration of a perfume in eau de parfum dilution will necessarily be higher then the same perfume in eau de toilette form, the same trends maynot necessarily apply to different perfume composition much less across different perfume houses.

A mixture of alcohol and water are used as the solvent for the aromatics. On application, body heat causes the solvent to evaporate quickly, leaving the fragrance to evaporate gradually over several hours. The rate of evaporation( vapor pressure ) and the odor strength of the compound partly determines the tenaciousness of the compound and determines its perfume note classification.

• Top notes : Scents that are perceived a few minutes after the application of a perfume. Top notes create the scents that forms a person's initial impression of a perfume. Because of this, they are very important in the selling of a perfume. The scents of this note class are usually described as "fresh", "assertive" or "sharp". The compounds that contribute to top notes are strong in scent, very volatile, and evaporate quickly. Citrus and ginger scents are common top notes.
• Heart notes or Middle notes : The scent of a perfume that emerges after the top notes dissipate. The heart note compounds form the "heart" or main body of a perfume and acts to smooth the sharpness from the initial impression of a perfume caused by the top notes. Not surprisingly, the scent of heart note compounds are usually more mellow and "rounded". Scents from this note class appear anywhere from 10 minutes to 1 hour after the application of a perfume. Lavender and rose scents are typical heart notes.
• Base notes : The scent of a perfume that appears after the departure of the heart notes. Base Notes bring depth and solidness to a perfume. Compounds of this class are usually the fixatives used to hold and boost the strength of the lighter top and heart notes. The compounds of this class of scents are typically rich and "deep" and are usally not perceived until 30 minutes after the application of the perfume or during the period perfume dry-down . Musk , vetiver and scents of plant resins are commonly used as base notes.

History of perfume and perfumery

Perfumery , or the art of making perfumes began in ancient Egypt but was developed and further refined by the Romans and the Arabs . Knowledge of perfumery came to Europe as early as the 14th century . During the Renaissance period, perfumes were used primarily by royalty and the wealthy to mask bodily odors resulting from the sanitary practices of the day.

In the Islamic culture, perfume usage has been documented as far back as the 6th century and its usage is considered a religious duty. The Prophet Muhammad said, "The taking of a bath on Friday is compulsory for every male Muslim who has attained the age of puberty and (also) the cleaning of his teeth with Siwak (type of twig used as a toothbrush), and the using of perfume if it is available." (Recorded in Sahih Bukhari )

Partly due to this patronage, the western perfumery industry was created. By the 18th century , aromatic plants were being grown in the Grasse region of France to provide the growing perfume industry with raw materials. Even today, France remains the centre of the European perfume design and trade .

Natural and synthetic aromatics

Plant sources

Plants have long been used in perfumery as a source of essential oils and aroma compounds. These aromatics are usually secondary metabolites produced by plants as protection against herbivores as well as to attract pollinators . Plants are by far the largest source of fragrant compounds used in perfumery. The sources of these compounds may be derived from various parts of a plant. A plant can offer more than one source of aromatics, for instance the aerial portions and seeds of coriander have remarkably different odors from each other. Orange leaves, blossoms, and fruit zest are the respective sources of petit grain , neroli , and orange oils.

• Flowers and Blossoms : Undoubtably the largest source of aromatics. Includes the flowers of several species of rose and lavender , as well as jasmine , osmanthus , mimosa , tuberose , as well as the blossoms of citrus and ylang-ylang trees. Although not traditionally thought of as a flower, the unopened flower buds of the clove are also commonly used. Orchid flowers are not commercially used to produce essential oils or absolutes.
• Leaves and Twigs : Commonly used for perfumery are patchouli , sage , violets , rosemary , and citrus leaves. Sometimes leaves are valued for the "green" smell they bring to perfumes, examples of this include hay and tomato leaf.
• Roots , rhizomes and bulbs : Commonly used terrestrial portions in perfumery include iris rhizomes , vetiver roots, various rhizomes of the ginger family.
• Seeds : Commonly used seeds include vanilla , tonka bean , coriander , caraway , cocoa , nutmeg , mace , cardamom , and anise .
• Fruits : Fresh fruits such as apples , strawberries , cherries unfortunately do not yield the expected odors; if you find such fragrance notes in a perfume, they're synthetic. Notable exceptions include litsea cubeba , and juniper berry . The most commonly used fruits yield their aromatics from the rind; they include citrus such as oranges , lemons , limes , and grapefruit .
• Woods : Highly important in providing the base notes to a perfume, wood oils and distillates are indispensible in perfumery. Commonly used woods include sandalwood , rosewood , agarwood , birch , cedar , juniper , and pine .
• Bark : Commonly used barks includes cinnamon and cascarilla . The fragrant oil in sassafras root bark is also used either directly or purified for its main constituent, safrole , which is used in the synthesis of other fragrant compounds such as helional .
• Resins : Valued since antiquity, resins have been widely used in incense and perfumery . Highly fragrant and antiseptic resins and resin-containing perfumes have been used by many cultures as medicines for a large variety of ailments. Commonly used resins in perfumery include labdanum , frankincense / olibanum , myrrh , Peru balsam , gum benzoin . Pine and fir resins are a particularly valued source of terpenes used in the organic synthesis of many other synthetic or naturally occurring aromatic compounds. Some of what is called amber and copal in perfumery today is the resinous secretion of fossil conifers .
• Lichens : Commonly used lichen includes oakmoss and treemoss thalli.

Animal sources

• Musk : Originally derived from the musk sacs from the Asian musk deer, it has now been replaced by the use of synthetic musks due to its price and various ethical issues.
• Civet : Also call Civet Musk, this is obtained from the odorous sacs of the civets, animals in the family Viverridae , related to the Mongoose .
• Castoreum : Obtained from the odorous sacs of the North American beaver.
• Ambergris : Lumps of oxidized fatty compounds, whose precursors were secreted and expelled by the Sperm Whale .
• Honeycomb : Distilled from the honeycomb of the Honeybee .

Synthetic sources

Synthetic aromatics are created through organic synthesis from various chemical compounds that are obtained from petroleum distillates or pine resins. Synthetics can provide fragrances which are not found in nature. For instance, Calone , a compound of synthetic origin, imparts a fresh ozonous metallic marine scent that is widely used in contemporary perfumes. Synthetic aromatics are often used as an alternate source of compounds that are not easily obtained from natural sources. For example, linalool and coumarin are both naturally occurring compounds that can be cheaply synthesized from terpenes . Orchid scents are usually not obtained directly from the plant itself but are instead synthetically created to match the fragrant compounds found in various orchids.

Health and ethical issues

Use of Aromatics

In some cases, an excessive use of perfumes may cause allergic reactions of the skin. For instance, acetophenone , ethyl acetate and acetone while present in many perfumes, are are also known or potential respiratory allergens .

It is important to note that there is no benefit from creating a perfume exclusively from natural materials. There are several reasons for this:

• Many natural aroma materials are in fact inherently toxic and are either banned or restricted by IFRA . These naturals have been replaced by safer artificial or synthetic materials.

• Many natural materials and essential oil contain the same chemicals used in perfumes that are classified as allergens, many of them at higher concentrations.

• Perfume composed only of expensive natural materials could be very expensive. Synthetic aromatics make possible perfumes at reasonable prices.

• In the distillation of natural essential oils any biocides (including pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides) that have been applied while the plant is growing may be concentrated into the essential oil making the oil toxic. Unless the essential oil is distilled from a certified organic origin, it may be dangerous.

• There are many new synthetic aromas that bear no olfactory relationship to any natural material and yet modern perfumery depends on these new odours for the infinite variety of perfumes available today. Many synthetics have very beautiful aromas not available in nature.

Fragrance oils , also known as aroma oils , aromatic oils , and flavor oils , are blended synthetic aroma compounds or natural essential oils that are diluted with a carrier like propylene glycol , vegetable oil , or mineral oil . Aromatic oils are used in perfumery , cosmetics , flavoring of food , and in aromatherapy .

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