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Geranyl Acetate

Q: Is Geranyl Acetate natural or synthetic?

. Extraction: Industrial production: Fischer esterification of geraniol with acetic acid or acetic anhydride, acid-catalysed, yielding geranyl acetate at high purity (90–100% assay, typically containing 4–6% residual geraniol and 1–2% neryl acetate as the cis-isomer). Also obtainable by fractional distillation of palmarosa, citronella, or lemongrass essential oils in which it naturally occurs. Enzymatic synthesis via lipase-catalysed transesterification in supercritical CO₂ or n-hexane has been demonstrated at laboratory scale (Candida antarctica lipase, ~85% yield after 72 hours). Available commercially in multiple grades: natural (ex palmarosa), synthetic, and FCC food-grade..

FLOWERS / floral · fruity · rosy

Geranyl Acetate

Category	FLOWERS
Subcategory	floral · fruity · rosy
Origin
Volatility	Heart Note
Botanical	N/A — synthetic ester (also found in Cymbopogon, Pelargonium, and Eucalyptus oils)
Appearance	Colorless to pale yellow clear liquid with sweet fruity-floral odor
Producing Countries	China, India, United States
Pyramid	Heart

Ripe pear skin over a bed of crushed rose petals. Geranyl acetate is the softer, fruitier sibling of geraniol — where geraniol is a rose in full sun, this ester wraps it in waxy sweetness and a faint green coolness.

Scent
The Full Story
Fun Fact
Extraction & Chemistry
In Perfumery

Scent

Sweet, rosy-floral with a pronounced pear-skin fruitiness. Waxy and slightly green, with a faint cool edge. Softer and more rounded than geraniol, less sharp than citronellol, and without the honeyed depth of phenylethyl alcohol. At low doses it reads as transparent fruit; at higher concentrations the rose character asserts itself with a soapy, clean quality. Substantivity of approximately 24 hours at full concentration.

Evolution over time

Immediately

Sweet pear-skin fruitiness over a rosy-waxy base. Green, slightly cool. The ester character dominates.

After a few hours

Fruity edge recedes as esterases begin hydrolysis. Rose character strengthens, becoming warmer, less waxy, closer to pure geraniol.

After a few days

Soft floral residue. The molecule has largely converted to geraniol on skin. Faint soapy-rosy warmth persists.

The Full Story

Geranyl acetate (CAS 105-87-3, C₁₂H₂₀O₂) [A] is the acetate ester of geraniol — a colourless to pale-yellow liquid with a soft, ripe-pear / rose-fruity character. It occurs naturally at significant concentrations in palmarosa (Cymbopogon martinii), citronella (Cymbopogon nardus), petitgrain bigarade, geranium (Pelargonium graveolens, up to 5–15%) and lemongrass. Commercial product is synthesised by esterification of geraniol with acetic anhydride.

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In perfumery, geranyl acetate is the workhorse of rose-floral accords — it adds the fruity-pear lift that rose absolute alone lacks, and softens the green-citronellal edge of geranium oil. It pairs naturally with linalool, citronellol, ionones, and the rest of the rose-leaf chemistry. Restricted under IFRA 51st Amendment Cat 4 leave-on as a potential sensitiser (limits typically below 5%).

Sources

[A] PubChem CID 1549026 — geranyl acetate, CAS 105-87-3. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/1549026.

Did You Know?

Did you know?

In 1869, Ferdinand Tiemann at the University of Berlin acetylated geraniol isolated from palmarosa oil, producing geranyl acetate and confirming its structural identity. The same Tiemann later synthesised vanillin (1874) and ionone (1893) — three molecules that between them underpin half of modern perfumery.

Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method: Industrial production: Fischer esterification of geraniol with acetic acid or acetic anhydride, acid-catalysed, yielding geranyl acetate at high purity (90–100% assay, typically containing 4–6% residual geraniol and 1–2% neryl acetate as the cis-isomer). Also obtainable by fractional distillation of palmarosa, citronella, or lemongrass essential oils in which it naturally occurs. Enzymatic synthesis via lipase-catalysed transesterification in supercritical CO₂ or n-hexane has been demonstrated at laboratory scale (Candida antarctica lipase, ~85% yield after 72 hours). Available commercially in multiple grades: natural (ex palmarosa), synthetic, and FCC food-grade.

Molecular Formula	C12H20O2
CAS Number	105-87-3
Botanical Name	N/A — synthetic ester (also found in Cymbopogon, Pelargonium, and Eucalyptus oils)
IFRA Status	No known restrictions
Synonyms	GERANYL ACETATE · 3,7-DIMETHYL-2,6-OCTADIENOATE
Physical Properties
Lasting Power	24 hour(s) at 100.00 %
Appearance	Colorless to pale yellow clear liquid with sweet fruity-floral odor
Boiling Point	240.00 to 245.00 °C. @ 760.00 mm Hg
Flash Point	219.00 °F. TCC ( 104.00 °C. )
Specific Gravity	0.91090 to 0.91290 @ 25.00 °C.
Refractive Index	1.45300 to 1.46900 @ 20.00 °C.

In Perfumery

Top-to-heart modifier and blending ester. Geranyl acetate functions primarily as a fruity-floral bridge: it smooths the junction between citrus openings and floral hearts without adding density. Indispensable in rose accords, where it provides the fruity dimension that separates a flat reconstruction from a convincing one — standard rose bases pair it with citronellol (green-rosy), phenylethyl alcohol (honeyed), rose oxide (metallic-green), and damascones (jammy richness). Beyond rose, it lifts lavender reconstructions, softens neroli accords, and adds transparency to white-floral bouquets. IFRA-unrestricted as of the 51st Amendment, though classified as a fragrance allergen under EU Regulation 2023/1545, requiring label declaration above 0.001% in leave-on products. Maximum recommended usage: 12% in the fragrance concentrate per IFRA guidelines.