Chamomile blue oil

Other comments :

The compound that gives the oil its blue colour is called chamazulene. Over time, the blue colour tends to disappear into an alcoholic base and give way to a browner hue.
Adulteration is possible using low cost Bisabolol, extracted from a shrub called Candeia (Vanillosmopsis erythropappa), known for its high Bisabolol content.

Stability :

Solubility issues in perfumes
Can fade through time and get a brownish colour
The terpenes identified in this raw material can polymerize when they are oxidized

Uses in perfumery :

Used in fine fragrance in fougere, rose, dried fruits, tea and in association with sagebrush.

Chemotypes :

Blue chamomile is a so-called ''sesquiterpenes '' chamomile for its composition. There are several varieties of chamomiles, some of which are only used in perfumery:
Anthemis nobilis or Roman chamomile, whose essential oil grown around the Mediterranean is also widely used in perfumery.
Anthemis arvensis is an scentless variety of chamomile.
Anthemis cotula or stinking chamomile, is renowned for its very powerful and unpleasant smell.
Anthemis tinctoria or yellow chamomile, is a yellow variety, grown in Europe and West Asia.
Ormenis multicaulis or Moroccan wild chamomile, grown for its essential oil in the Mediterranean basin. It has a fruity and green note.
Matricaria discoidea or pineapple weed, native to North America and subsequently introduced in France.
Four main chemotypes of blue chamomile exist, including one with α-Bisabolol (found in Spain and Portugal) and one with bisaboloxides, known to be antiviral.

Extraction process :

The harvest of chamomile is made with a harvester.
Chamomiles are distilled in two ways: traditionally or in a truck box. Traditional distillation involves harvesting the chamomile with its stems without grinding it. The fresh plant is left outside to dry in the sun, before it is extracted classically, by steaming in distillation tanks. Truck box distillation consists in harvesting chamomile and its stem with a harvester by grinding it. The chamomile is extracted inside the harvest box, with a water vapor entry and an exit towards a coolant, where the essential oil is collected.
Traditional distillation gives a warmer and herbaceous scent, as both green and volatile molecules have evaporated during the drying step.
The extraction yield of blue chamomile is between 3 and 8 ‰.
The essential oil of blue camomile can be distilled to be bleached, without a great olfactory deterioration.

Geographic origin :

Data not available.