Australasian Sandalwood Oil

#### Sandalwood Oil, Australasian. Next to East Indian sandalwood oil, the west Australian oil is the most important of the various types of "true sandalwood oils" in perfumery. The oil is obtained by a combination of solvent extraction and steam distillation of the wood from a small west Australian wildgrowing tree, **Eucaria Spicata**. Since the wood is also suitable for woodcarving and incense making, the better lumber is exported as such to India and other eastern countries where it is used as "sandalwood" equal to the East Indian sandalwood. The Australian tree is a close relative to the parent tree of East Indian sandalwood oil (see next monograph). The essential oil from **Eucaria**** ****Spicata**** **is produced in western Australia only. The oil is occasionally rectified further in Australia prior to shipping. Australasian Sandalwood Oil is a pale yellow viscous liquid whose odor is soft, woody, extremely tenacious and somewhat balsamic in its delicate sweetness. Its topnote is distinctly different from that of the East Indian sandalwood oil, not sweet but rather dry-bitter, slightly resinous like myrrh oil, although not very pronounced. On drying out, the odor slowly becomes very similar to that of the East Indian oil. Apart from this characteristic topnote, there is very little difference in the overall odor between the East Indian oil and the Australasian oil. Redistilled Australasian sandalwood oil competes favorably with commercial grades of East Indian sandalwood oil. **Australasian Sandalwood Oil **is used mainly as a replacement for East Indian sandalwood oil although the price difference is not very great. The Australasian oil is very suitable for the isolation of santalol, the main constituent. It should be kept in mind, however, that the conventionally given figure of 90/95 **% **"**Santalol**" in this oil refers to "total alcohols", out of which perhaps 10% are not santalol. Fractionated distillation will eliminate the head fractions of hydrocarbons and other non-alcoholic components, while the main fraction will consist of "total alcohols", generally named "**Santalol**" in perfumery and having the odor of East Indian "santalol". **Australasian**** ****Sandalwood Oil**** **is also used in perfumery for its balsamic-woody notes and great tenacity (fixative value). It blends well with linalool or bois de rose oil, hydroxycitronellal, geraniol, citronellol, geranium oil, isoeugenol, vetiver oil, bergamot oil, oakmoss products, labdanum products, benzoin, ionones, methylionones, phenylethyl alcohol, etc. Its characteristic topnote often makes it unsuitable for direct replacement of the East Indian oil. Finally, the Australasian oil is still used in the Far East for pharmaceutical purposes, particularly as a disinfectant for the urinary tract, a use which has practically been abandoned in Europe and the U.S.A. **Australian**** ****Sandalwood**** ****Oil**** **is rarely adulterated, but there are various qualities on the market. Years ago, cutting of the oil was accomplished with an essential oil, derived from a south Australian tree related to the **Eucaria Spicata**. The oil from the south Australian tree does not contain significant amounts of santalol. An entirely different oil is obtained from the wood of a small southeastern Australian tree, **Eremophila**** ****Mitchelli**. Neither of the two oils are commercially produced or regularly available (see also monographs on **Osyris**** ****Tenuifolia **and **Santalum**** ****Citrinum**). The annual production of Australasian sandalwood oil fluctuates widely; it has been as high as 60 metric tons (in the early 1930's). It is presently between 3 and 15 metric tons. With respect to quantity, it presents no threat at all to the East Indian oil.