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Citrus aurantium

Petitgrain oil

Under the IFRA Standards a rinse-off soap may hold up to 16.66 % of this oil, a limit set by its 2-Hexenal.

IFRA maximum for soap

16.66 % at most, of the soap

Restricted constituents, at the typical levels IFRA's annex gives:

Geraniol
2.4 %
Citral
0.65 %
2-Hexenal
0.09 %
Citronellal
0.05 %

Worked out from typical levels. A supplier's certificate for your lot comes first, and its figure is the one to follow.

Check a blend against its IFRA limits and list its allergens in the fragrance and allergen calculator.

How essential oils behave in soap, and how much to use: Scenting soap.

Identity and labelling

Citrus Aurantium Amara Leaf/Twig Oil

Botanical name
Citrus aurantium
CAS
68916-04-1, 72968-50-4
EC
277-143-2

The EU does not name this oil itself as an allergen to label, but some of its constituents may be: the fragrance allergen tool works them out for a recipe.

What it is and how it behaves in soap

Petitgrain oil is steam-distilled from the leaves and twigs of the bitter orange tree. Bigarade petitgrain comes from France, Italy, Spain and North Africa, and petitgrain Paraguay from a variety naturalised there (SCCS). It smells green, woody and floral, like neroli without its sweetness.

Grosso calls it an excellent foil for sweet florals and a great blender, and a little lifts lavender, geranium or ylang-ylang. Failor uses it in her perfume-style blends. Our books give no cold process rate, so start from Fisher's general 3.1 to 4.4 % of the oils and test a small batch first (Faiola). The IFRA figure on this page is the ceiling.

Much of the oil is linalyl acetate (Simmons and Appleton), which with linalool oxidises in air into skin sensitisers (SCCS), so keep the bottle cool, full and closed.

Recipes that use it

Sources

All essential oils