Commercial and scientific notes on essential oils. 



51 



Oil of Mosla japonica. — Since Hada's discovery of thymol in the oil of Mosla 

 japonica. Maxim, this plant has been cultivated in Japan with the object of obtaining 

 this phenol. On investigating the terpene fractions of the oil 1 ), Y. Murayama 2 ) found 

 a new terpene named by him moslene. This body was found in a fraction with the 

 b. p. 59 to 60° (10 mm.) or 173 to 175° (ord. pressure) obtained from an oil after the 

 thymol had been removed with alkali. The fraction, which was not quite free from 

 oxygen, showed some resemblance with the terpene crithmene obtained by Francesconi 

 and Sernagiotto 3 ) from Italian samphire oil, and had the following constants: — di 80 0.8528, 

 n D 1.48228; nitrosochloride m. p. 111°, nitrolpiperidide m. p. 142 to 143°, nitrolanilide 

 m. p. 126 to 128°, dihydrochloride m. p. 52°, nitrosate m. p. 114°. 



On treatment of the nitrosochloride, in alcoholic solution, with sodium, a body 

 (CioHi3) 2 N.20 resulted; yellow needles, m. p. 52 to 53°; sometimes, a less soluble 

 substance (CioHi 3 ) 2 N 2 , orange-yellow 

 leaflets, m. p. 85 to 87°, was formed, 

 which proved to be identical with azo- 

 ^-cymene (m. p. 87°); formation of the 

 latter by reduction of j?-nitrocymene. 

 The identity of the yellow body (m.p.52 

 to 53°), too, with azoxy-£>-cymene, is, in 

 Murayama's opinion, established, in 

 so far as the yellow body and azoxy- 

 7>cymene, on reduction, both give rise 

 to the identical benzidine derivatives 

 ([C 10 His • NH 2 • HC1] 2 , decompos. p. 292°;. 



According to Murayama, moslene, therefore, is a dihydrocymene, with two double 

 bonds located most probably in the benzene nucleus. Since amongst the five isomerides 

 complying to these conditions three are known, i. e., «-terpinene, /-terpinene, and «-phel- 

 landrene, moslene appears to be constituted as stated in one of the above formulas. 



H 2 C 



CH 

 C3H7 



1 : 4-Dihydrocymene. 



Mustardseed Oil. — Up to now it was only known that the insoluble deposits, 

 forming sometimes in mustardseed oil, consisted of an orange yellow compound, 

 containing carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen and sulphur. H. Kunz-Krause 4 ) investigated this 

 compound more closely. He comes to the conclusion that it is not a uniform body, 

 but is composed of allylamine sulphate, soluble in water, and ^.semfo-sulphocyanogen, 

 insoluble in water. In addition to these two chief compounds, there are present most 

 likely small quantities of xanthogenic acid derivatives, iso-sulphocyanic acid and allyl- 

 substituted urea. As the constituent of the deposit which could be washed out with 

 water, smelled distinctly of mustardseed oil, after having been stored over caustic 

 lime for several months, the author thinks that the insoluble part decomposes and 

 splits off allyl mustard oil. It is probable that a solid polymeride of iso-sulphoallyl 

 cyanide (S = C = N — C 3 H 5 )n forms, perhaps in combination with ^sewdo-sulphocyanogen, 

 C3HS3N3, formerly called per-sulpho-cyanogen 5 ). The author gives as the reason for 

 the formation of the deposit and of the other accessory compounds always present in 

 mustardseed oil, the decomposition of three molecules of mustardseed oil in sulphur 

 and allyl cyanide, and certain intramolecular changes of the mustardseed oil, due to 



*) Cf. Bericht (German) 19*20, 42. — 2 ) Journ. pharm. Soc. Japan 1921, No. 475. According to a reprint 

 kindly forwarded to us. — *) Cf. Report October 1913, 94. — *) Arch, der P/mrm. 259 (1921), 16. As per a 

 reprint kindly sent us. — B ) I. Maier, Die atherischen die, Stuttgart 1862, p. 167. 



4 * 



