Lime oil distilled

Chemotypes :

The Citrus L. genus, which includes the vast majority of citrus fruits, contains a large number of varieties used in perfumery:

- Citrus × aurantium L.: Bitter orange tree, cultivated in Spain and Florida. Orange oil expressed (Bitter) / Orange oil (Bitter) / Petitgrain bigarade oil / Petitgrain bigarade absolute / Petitgrain oil (Paraguay) / Orange flower absolute (Bitter) / Orange flower concrete (Bitter) / Orange flower SFE (Bitter)
- Citrus × aurantiifolia (Christm.) Swingle: The lime tree, mostly cultivated in Mexico. Lime oil expressed / Lime oil distilled
- Citrus × bergamia Risso: The bergamot tree, a hybrid of lemon and bitter orange, cultivated for its fruit and petitgrain oils. Bergamot oil expressed / Petitgrain bergamot absolute.
- Citrus hystrix DC.: Kaffir lime, grown in Thailand and India. Kaffir lime oil.
- Citrus × junos Siebold ex Yu.Tanaka: Yuzu, produced in Japan and Korea. Yuzu oil / Citrus junos oil / Citrus junos extract
- Citrus × limon (L.) Burm.fil.: The lemon tree, cultivated in Italy for its fruit and leafy branches. Lemon oil / Lemon oil (distilled, rectified) / Petitgrain lemon oil
- Citrus × paradisi Macfad.: The grapefruit tree, of Malay origin, cultivated in Brazil and Israel for its fruit’s essential oil. Grapefruit oil / Grapefruit flower oil / Grapefruit oil expressed
- Citrus sinensis L.: The sweet orange tree, widely cultivated in Brazil and California, is the most used citrus in perfumery. Orange flower absolute (Sweet) / Orange flower concrete (Sweet) / Orange flower SFE (Sweet) / Orange cold pressed (Sweet)
- Citrus reticulata Blanco: The mandarin tree, especially cultivated in Italy for its fruit and petitgrain (leaf oil). Mandarin oil (red) / Mandarin oil (yellow) / Mandarin oil (green) / Petitgrain mandarin oil. Its hybrid with sweet orange gave rise to the clementine (Clementine oil).
- Citrus medica L.: The citron tree, grown in Sicily. Citron oil.

Extraction process :

The lime tree can be up to 5 meters tall, with fruits up to 5 centimetres in diameter. Its cultivation extends from March to November and represents 1.5 to 2 million tons each year in Mexico. Fruit extraction can be done in two ways: by steam distillation or by cold expression. Often, the essential oil of Mexican lime results from the steam distillation of crushed zests. The fruit of the lime tree is harvested by hand and brought to the factory in crates. The fruits are sorted manually and washed.
As for other citrus fruits, they are sent in a peeling machine (pelatrice) to remove the zest. Zests are collected and steam distilled to obtain an essential oil that is greener, denser and with a more coumarin smell. In the case of a cold expression, citrus fruits are sent in a sfumatrice. Then, the oil and the zest debris are centrifuged with the water used for the process, to obtain the isolated essential oil.
The yield of an expression is between 0.1 and 0.15%.
The essential oil of lime can be subjected to a new distillation to remove certain terpenes or to isolate them, in addition to concentrate the more powerful compounds of the essential oil. A rectification of the oil can also be used to remove the furocoumarins (photosensitizers).

Uses in perfumery :

Modifier of citrus notes. Used for citrus notes in eaux fraîches perfumes, in consumer products and especially detergents.

Stability :

Solubility issues in perfumes
Citruses tend to fade through time in perfumes
Limonene tends to convert into Carvone through time, and to give a minthy note to the oil
The terpenes identified in this raw material can polymerize when they are oxidized

Other comments :

Mexican lime, also known as lime key, is the most widely grown fruit in Mexico.
Citrus currently suffer from a disease called "citrus greening". This disease is deadly for citrus fruits and no treatment exists. It is transmitted by a vector insect that attacks young shoots: the psylla. This results in the premature death of many trees and therefore the decline in the general production of the essential oil and its quality (reduction of the D-Limonene level).

Mexican lime, also known as lime key, is the most widely grown fruit in Mexico.
Citrus currently suffer from a disease called "citrus greening". This disease is deadly for citrus fruits and no treatment exists. It is transmitted by a vector insect that attacks young shoots: the psylla. This results in the premature death of many trees and therefore the decline in the general production of the essential oil and its quality (reduction of the D-Limonene level).

Allergens :

Citral - Linalool - D-Limonene

Signal word :

Warning

Hazard pictograms :

Precautionary statements :

IFRA 51^th :

This ingredient is restricted by the 51th amendment

Quantitative limit on the use :

Annexe I :

Some regulated synthetic ingredients are found in nature and in certain proportions in natural ingredients. This presence in nature has to be taken into account when calculating limits of use recommended by the IFRA. In case you do not know these concentrations, you can use the ones estimated by the IFRA. Here they are :

Restricted ingredients due to phototoxicity considerations: notes
This Standard is set due to the phototoxic effects of Lime oil expressed. For more detailed information on the application of this Standard, please refer to the note on phototoxic ingredients in chapter 1 of the Guidance for the use of IFRA Standards. If the level of furocoumarins is unknown, the restriction level specified in this IFRA Standard applies. Combination effects of phototoxic ingredients are only taken into consideration for the furocoumarin-containing fragrance ingredients (extracts) listed in the IFRA Standard of Citrus oils and other furocoumarins containing essential oils. If combinations of furocoumarin-containing phototoxic fragrance ingredients (extracts) are used, the use levels must be reduced accordingly. The sum of the concentrations of all furocoumarin-containing phototoxic fragrance ingredients (extracts), expressed in of their recommended upper concentration level in the consumer product shall not exceed 100. For qualities of the expressed oil in which the less volatile components have been concentrated by partial or total removal of the terpene fraction, this limit should be reduced in proportion to the degree of concentration.

Disclaimer :

ScenTree is solely responsible for the information provided here.

To learn more about IFRA's standards : https://ifrafragrance.org/safe-use/library