[Reprinted from the Journal of Industrial and 



Vol. 6, No. 10, past: 804. ( k-toln-r. IM4. 1 



INVESTIGATIONS ON OIL OF BLACK SAGE 



By CHARLES E. BURKE AND CHARLES C. SCAHONE 

 Received June 22. 1914 



In 1912 a bulletin was published by the Bureau of 

 Plant Industry (No: 235), reporting an analysis of 

 the oil of black sage, Ramona Stachyoides, of Southern 

 California. This analysis accounted for 62.5 per cent 

 of the oil (camphor, 40 per cent; cineol, 22.5 per cent), 

 but the other constituents were not definitely identi- 

 fied, 



Since the black sage grows extensively in Southern 

 California and might become of more or less commercial 

 importance, it seemed to us advisable to continue this 

 work, first with the idea of determining the yields of 

 camphor and cineol at a slightly different season of 

 the year; secondly, to definitely determine the other 

 constituents, and whether or not any of the constituents 

 were present in sufficient quantity to be commercially 

 important. 



Through the kindness of Professor C. S. Milliken, 

 Assistant Superintendent of University Extension of 

 Agriculture, several hundred pounds of leaves and twigs 

 which had been simply snipped from the ends of the 

 branches, were forwarded to us from the University 

 Experiment Station at Riverside, in February. These 

 were several weeks in transit and probably suffered 

 some loss from exposure but upon distillation with 

 steam gave a yield of oil corresponding to 0.90 per cent 

 of the weight of material used. This yield is very much 

 higher than that obtained by the Bureau of Plant Indus- 

 try, who made their distillation about two months later 

 in the season, while the plant was in bloom, and ob- 

 tained a yield of only 0.7-5 P er cent. 



Not only was the yield much greater, but, as might 

 be expected, the physical constants of the oil were quite 

 different from those obtained by the Bureau of Plant 

 Industry, as may be seen from the following comparison: 



Bureau of Plant Industry Our determination 



Specific gravity 24 0.9144 15 0.5979 



" rotation 30.2 24.4 



Index of refraction 1.4682 1,4729 



Sol. in 70 per cent alcohol. . . . Sol. in 1 V to 3V vol. Insoluble 



Acid No 



Ester No 2.5 1.6 



On cooling to 20 C. . . Solid separated. No solid separated 



In order tq^determmc approximately the number of 

 d) 



