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I love esters. This infographic is totally self-explanatory to any chemist. (Or email me if you have any questions.) Enjoy! 😉
- Esters are made by reacting alcohols and carboxylic acids together in a condensation reaction.
- Different combinations of alcohols and carboxylic acids give rise to different esters, and each ester has a unique aroma.
- These esters are found naturally in fruits and vegetables and are also used in perfumes.
- You can now look up an ester in the table above and find its aroma by referring to the picture.
- Ambiguous or “mixed” smells are indicated by the presence of multiple images in each box.
- Benzyl salicylate is amazing: some people can perceive it while others can’t. However, people who can’t perceive benzyl salicylate can tell that it alters the overall aroma of perfume to which it’s been added! Magic!
- You can make any of these relatively safely in the kitchen or at school.
- All of these esters are edible in minuscule (microgram) amounts and are found naturally in all fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices.
- That said, though,
- never eat anything you make in the lab!
James Kennedy 