The “Coffee Cake & Spice” Fragrance oil’s top note is a buttery caramel nuance with nuances of jasmine, the middle note is cinnamon sugar and the delicious scent comes to a well-rounded finish with nutty, powder and vanilla notes at the base.

This Fragrance oil can be used in different products with a specific concentration, such as : Soap, Candle and potpourri.

First take a look about the natural oils that can be used to bring the smell of the coffee cake’s main ingredients. This will allow us to draw conclusions about the origin of certain molecules used to create the coffee cake fragrance.
 

• Caracteristics

Scientifically known as Jasminum, the Jasmin contains around 200 species native to tropical and warm temperate regions of Eurasia, Australasia and Oceania. The most commonly cultivated and commercialized species include Jasminum officinale (Common Jasmine), Jasminum sambac (Arabian Jasmine), and Jasminum grandiflorum (Spanish Jasmine) for both the domestic and industrial uses, such as the perfume industry because of the characteristic fragrance of their flower.

This plant has two types of flowering: winter jasmine with yellow flowers and summer jasmine with white or pink flowers.

During Spring, jasmine’s flowers lend a floral scent that is rich and sweet, almost honey-like scent.

However, in function of the jasmine specie, the smell can be different but the most Jasmine scents today come from Jasminum officinale flowers, because they provide deep and sweet smells.

• The Jasmine absolute

Jasmine absolute oil, extracted from the flowers, has a sweet, floral note characteristic of its main component, the benzyl benzoate. In perfumes, the fresh scent of jasmine is used as a top note and recalls femininity.

In addition to the perfume industry, it’s used in aromatherapy for its calming, uplifting effects on the mind and body.

The Vanilla

• Caracteristics

Vanilla is an expensive spice  derived from the fruit of the orchids from Madagascar, Tahiti, Mexico, Reunion etc.

Thanks to its sweet flavour, its smell and its health benefits, vanilla is used to bakery, perfume and aromatherapy.

Because vanilla extract can be expensive, the spice can be substitued by vanillin, a synthetic molecul produced artificially .

• The Vanilla absolute

The vanilla absolute oil is made through a labor-intensive solvent-extraction process using ripe black vanilla pods. Post extraction, nearly all the sugar alcohol solvent evaporates, leaving a highly concentrated product with 5-hydroxymethylfurfural and vanillin. Vanilla is one of my favorite scents. It's a familiar, reassuring, sweet smell used as a base note in a perfume.

Once the fragrance was dilute at a concentration of 0,5mg/mL, in the non polar solvant, it was analyzed by GC/MS.

GC-MS analysis is useful to identify and quantify the components of Fragrance oil with the following parameters:

It is observed that the major component of the coffee cake Fragrance oil is The Diisooctyl adipate (66,77%) that corresponds to the least volatile compound.

Also known as DIOA, this industrial chemical synthetic molecule is an additive widely used in the cosmetic and perfume industry as a solvent to dissolve other substances, that explains its huge quantity in the fragrance oil.

Also it can be used as a Skin Care Agent or an emollient to soften and to keep the skin in good condition.

• The Benzyl Benzoate

The benzyl Benzoate has delicate, fresh, floral and slightly fruity notes. It occurs naturally in some plants like jasmine and its smell is sweet balsamic, reminiscent of ylang-ylang. According to the fragrance oil analized, this component creates the nuance of jasmine which sublimates the caramel smell in top notes.

This ester also acts as a solvent to dissolve other components and as a fixator to extend the shelf life of the fragrance oil.

• The Cinnamaldehyde

The Cinnamaldehyde is an aldehyde, with a high volatility that is responsible for the cinnamon smell, the middle note of the fragrance oil.

This molecule comes from the natural plant and this is the main component of the cinnamon bark essential (90%) oil and cinnamon bark hydrosol.

• The Vanillin

The vanillin is a naturally occurring aromatic aldehyde that develops in vanilla beans when they are prepared as a spice. Also known as methyl vanillin, is the key molecule that gives vanilla its distinct flavor and odor. So this molecule takes part to base note by bringing the smell of vanilla.

This note is sublimated and intensified by the ethyl vanillin, the piperonal and the coumarin.

• The  Piperonal

Known as heliotropin, the piperonal is an aromatic aldehyde used a lot in the perfume industry. Its fruity and floral smell is inheritance of vanilla or cherry. Its chemical structure is similar to that of vanillin. It’s naturally found in dill, black pepper and vanilla beans but can also be synthesized.

The second part is about identifying molecules in the headspace when fragrance oil is heated at 50°C by using the SPME method. So a fiber adsorbs molecules in the air and they are identified by GC/MS.

The GC/MS program is almost the same than the first one except for the temperature of the inlet, which has been lowered to 200°C:

Oven Temperature: 40°C - 300°C

Rate: 15°C/min

Inlet Temperature: 250°C

Column Flow:1,3 mL/min

A candle have been created with 5mL of  Fragrance oil for 100mL of wax. The aim of this part was to identify components in the headspace with the SPME method, when candle is lighted . I have tried different experimental set-up but any characteristic molecules were recovered with the syringe and the GC/MS analyses were unusable (Spectrums revealed only the background noise). Indeed, I think that the combustion reaction of the candle transforms the odorous volatile molecules into CO2.

To conclude, we can say that each chemical component plays an essential role to create the “Coffee Cake & Spice” Fragrance. The mix of natural and synthetic molecules  immerses us in a comforting atmosphere of a sweet tea time with notes of vanilla and cinnamon.

Natural compounds are predominant because they made up the fragrance thanks to their smell properties. We can suppose that natural compounds including vanillin and piperonal provide from the vanilla absolute oil. Also the cinnamaldehyde and the coumarin are from the cinnamon essential oil and benzyl benzoate can be bringing by  the Jasmine absolute oil.

Moreover, synthetic molecules allow to intensify the smell and stabilize the chemical composition over time to create a product with multiple uses.

But the  SPME method has revealed that in fact, the fragrance oil smell is mainly due to odorous properties of the cinnamaldehyde and that cinnamon is the most important smell to give the impression of smelling the spiced  Coffee Cake.

My name is Emmy, I am 19 and I’m studying chemistry at the IUT of Montpellier in the south of France. Thanks to my institution I have the opportunity to carry out my internship at the University of Ottawa as a Visitor Research Student to take part in the Sharon Curtis Hydrosol project.

It’s a wonderful experience to develop chemical knowledge about odorant products, to gain more practical experience in analytical chemistry and to work in a multicultural environment with Sharon Curtis and some grad students in Paul Mayer’s lab.

All the knowledge I've gained is very fascinating and enriching in terms of realizing my dream of a career in perfumery.

I'm glad to have worked on Sharon's new research project around fragrance oils. My study focused on the “Coffee Cake & Spice “ Fragrance, a very gourmet and comforting smell that allowed me to learn more about the fragrance notes I like and made my work even more enjoyable!