CO2 Extracts in Perfumery | Première Peau

CO2 extracts vary entirely by source material. The general quality is 'truer to nature' — less cooked, less artifact-laden than distilled oils. Rose CO2 is richer and more complete than rose otto; vanilla CO2 is deeper and more complex than vanilla absolute. The method preserves compounds that heat and solvents destroy or alter.

CO2 extraction (supercritical fluid extraction) is a method, not a fragrance note. It uses carbon dioxide at high pressure (above 73 atm) and moderate temperature (31+ degrees C), where CO2 enters a supercritical state — neither gas nor liquid — becoming an excellent solvent for volatile organic compounds.

The advantage over steam distillation is that CO2 extraction operates at lower temperatures, preserving heat-sensitive compounds that distillation destroys. The advantage over solvent extraction (hexane, ethanol) is that CO2 leaves no solvent residue — when pressure is released, CO2 simply evaporates as gas.

CO2 extracts often smell more 'true to nature' than distilled oils because they retain compounds lost during heating. Rose CO2, for example, preserves phenylethyl alcohol (the dominant molecule in rose scent) that is largely lost during steam distillation. Ginger CO2 retains more of the fresh, zingy character of raw ginger than the cooked-smelling distilled oil.