Myrcene


Myrcene

 

7-methyl-3-methylene-1,6-octadiene,

a terpene hydrocarbon; a colorless liquid with a distinctive tarry-citrus odor. Boiling point, 166°–168°C; density, 0.7905 g/cm3 at 20°C. It is virtually insoluble in water. Myrcene is found in certain essential oils (for example, 50 percent content in hop oil) and turpentine. It is prepared commercially by thermal isomerization of β-pinene, one of the constituents of turpentine. Myrcene is also a raw material in the manufacture of odoriferous substances, such as myrcenol.