Hmm, smells good! Wait, what are esters?

Hmm, that smells good! We often get to smell fragrance in our daily lives, whether it is from our foods, from the perfume, from the air refresher, so on and so forth. However, these pleasant smell does not came by nature, it was a chemical compound known as ESTER that produce these fragrant. Today, we are going to look at how esters are produced and what are the pros and cons!  

Do you know FLAVOUR ESTER?

Flavour esters are compounds of a great commercial importance due their application. It is used mainly in food and cosmetic industries, but also as environmentally-hazard solvents and intermediates in chemical and pharmaceutical processes. Traditionally, flavourings have been produced by chemical synthesis or extracted from plant materials. Although high costs plus low yields of natural compounds procedure made this technique inadequate at large scale. The examples of flavour esters are isoamyl acetate (banana ) , octyl acetate (orange) , methyl butyrate (pineapple), butyl acetate(apple), methyl trans-cinnamate (strawberry) and so on.

Let’s Look at some FLAVOUR ESTERS!

What is Isoamyl Acetate?

Isoamyl acetate is one of the most important flavour compounds used in food industries because of its characteristic banana flavour. The ester is used as a flavouring compound in many foods and drinks, such as honey, butterscotch, artificial coffee, beverages and perfumes. It is also one of the major flavour components of fermented alcoholic beverages, such as sake, beer and wines.

Here comes another Flavour Esters 

- METHYL BUTYRATE!

What is Methyl Butyrate?

Methyl butyrate (MB) otherwise also known as methyl butanoate methyl ester of butyric acid is an ester which gives a fruity odour of pineapple, apple, and strawberry. The formula of Methyl butyrate is C₅H₁₀O₂ Methyl butyrate can be obtained in small amounts from plant sources. Basically it is produced by distillation of vegetable based essential oils on small scale for utilization as perfumes or food flavours.

Third Example of Flavour Esters !

– OCTYL ACETATE (OA)

What is Octyl Acetate?

Octyl Acetate (OA)  or octyl ethanoate is an organic compound which acts as the flavour ester that is formed from octanol and acetic acid with a fruity orange flavour used in food and beverage industries. The formula of Octyl Acetate is CH₃(CH₂)₇O₂CCH₃.

How are all these flavour esters PRODUCED?

These flavour esters are produced by the acid acid catalyzed reaction which is known as Fischer esterification. When a carboxylic acid reacts with an alcohol, an ester is formed. In addition to an ester being form, water is another product of the reactions. Esterification typically requires a catalyst to speed the reaction. For years concentrated sulfuric acid (H₂SO₄) has been used to do so.

*Sulfuric acid is a very dangerous chemical, which can cause severe chemical burns when in contact with all human tissues. The utmost care needs to be taken when working with sulfuric acid.*

Are esters good for us? Yes or No?

However every flavourings do have side effects which could do harm to our body and isoamyl acetate is no exception from it. The initial signs and symptoms of flavouring-related fixed airways obstruction, including bronchiolitis obliterans, may be subtle. The signs and symptoms seen in affected workers include cough, fatigue, and shortness of breath with exertion. Signs and symptoms generally do not improve on weekends or vacations Signs and symptoms may have a gradual onset, but in some cases severe signs and symptoms have occurred suddenly with rapid progression of lung disease. Bronchiolitis obliterans is a rare and potentially life-threatening form of obstructive lung disease characterized by cough, shortness of breath with exertion, and spirometry findings of fixed airways obstruction.