Benzylacetone (IUPAC name: 4-phenylbutan-2-one) is a liquid with a sweet, flowery smell that is considered to be the most abundant attractant compound in flowers (e.g. Coyote Tobacco, ''
Nicotiana attenuata'') and one of volatile components of
cocoa.
It can be used as an attractant for melon flies (''
Bactrocera
''Bactrocera'' is a large genus of tephritid fruit flies, with close to 500 species currently described and accepted.
Name
The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used ...
cucurbitae''), in
perfume
Perfume (, ) is a mixture of fragrance, fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), Fixative (perfumery), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agre ...
,
and as an odorant for soap.
It can be prepared by the hydrogenation of
benzylideneacetone.
See also
*
Odor
An odor (American English) or odour ( Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is a smell or a scent caused by one or more volatilized chemical compounds generally found in low concentrations that humans and many animals can perceive ...
*
Pheromone
A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...
*
Fragrances
An aroma compound, also known as an odorant, aroma, fragrance, flavoring or flavor, is a chemical compound that has a smell or odor. For an individual chemical or class of chemical compounds to impart a smell or fragrance, it must be sufficien ...
References
{{reflist
External links
Fluka 4-Phenyl-2-butanoneNIST 4-Phenyl-2-butanone
Ketones
Flavors
Perfume ingredients
Phenyl compounds
Benzyl compounds
Sweet-smelling chemicals