Ethyl methylphenylglycidate, commonly known as strawberry aldehyde, is an
organic compound used in the
flavor industry in
artificial fruit flavors, in particular
strawberry
The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus ''Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...
.
Uses
Because of its pleasant taste and aroma, ethyl methylphenylglycidate finds use in the
fragrance industry, in
artificial flavor
A flavoring (or flavouring), also known as flavor (or flavour) or flavorant, is a food additive used to improve the taste or smell of food. It changes the perceptual impression of food as determined primarily by the chemoreceptors of the gus ...
s, and in
cosmetics
Cosmetics are constituted mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources, or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protect ...
.
[ Its end applications include ]perfume
Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. T ...
s, soaps, beauty care
Personal care or toiletries are consumer products used in personal hygiene, personal grooming or for beautification.
Products
Personal care includes products as diverse as cleansing pads, colognes, cotton swabs, cotton pads, deodorant, eye li ...
products, detergent
A detergent is a surfactant or a mixture of surfactants with cleansing properties when in dilute solutions. There are a large variety of detergents, a common family being the alkylbenzene sulfonates, which are soap-like compounds that are mor ...
s, pharmaceuticals, baked goods, candies, ice cream, and others.
Chemistry
Ethyl methylphenylglycidate contains ester and epoxide functional groups, despite its common name, lacks presence of an aldehyde
In organic chemistry, an aldehyde () is an organic compound containing a functional group with the structure . The functional group itself (without the "R" side chain) can be referred to as an aldehyde but can also be classified as a formyl group ...
. It is a colourless liquid that is insoluble in water.
Ethyl methylphenylglycidate is usually prepared by the condensation
Condensation is the change of the state of matter from the gas phase into the liquid phase, and is the reverse of vaporization. The word most often refers to the water cycle. It can also be defined as the change in the state of water vapor to ...
of acetophenone
Acetophenone is the organic compound with the formula C6H5C(O)CH3. It is the simplest aromatic ketone. This colorless, viscous liquid is a precursor to useful resins and fragrances.
Production
Acetophenone is formed as a byproduct of the cumene p ...
and the ethyl ester of monochloroacetic acid
Chloroacetic acid, industrially known as monochloroacetic acid (MCA), is the organochlorine compound with the formula ClCH2CO2H. This carboxylic acid is a useful building block in organic synthesis. It is a colorless solid. Related compounds ar ...
in the presence of a base, in a reaction known as the Darzens condensation.
Safety
Long-term, high-dose studies in rats have demonstrated that ethyl methylphenylglycidate has no significant adverse health effects and is not carcinogenic. The US Food and Drug Administration has classified ethyl methylphenylglycidate as generally recognized as safe (GRAS).
See also
* List of strawberry topics
This is a list of topics about the strawberry. The strawberry is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus ''Fragaria'' (collectively known as the strawberries). It is cultivated worldwide for its fruit. The fruit (which is not a botanical berry ...
References
{{reflist
Ethyl esters
Epoxides
Flavors
Food additives
Perfume ingredients
Strawberries